



§ LIBRARY OF CONGRESS-! 



Chap. 
*Sheff 



BExis. 






UN8TED STATES OF AMERICA. 



THE 



HARMONY OF PHRENOLOGY 



SCRIPTURE 



SHEWN IN 



A REFUTATION OF THE PHILOSOPHICAL ERRORS 



CONTAINED IN 



MR COMBE'S « CONSTITUTION OF MAN." 



By WILLIAM SCOTT, Eso. 



AMien men arrogantly abandon their guide, and wilfully shut their eyes on the light 
of heaven, it is wisely ordained that their errors shall multiply at every step, until 
their extravagance confutes itself, and the mischief of their principles works its own 
antidote. — Robert Hall. 



SECOND EDITION. 



EDINBURGH: 

FRASER & CO. 54, NORTH BRIDGE : 

SMITH, ELDER, & CO. AND H. WASHBOURNE, LONDON 

AND W. CURRY, JUN. & CO. DUBLIN. 




%\a 



f/ 



EDINBURGH: 
Printed by Andrew Shortrede, Thistle Lane. 



CONTENTS. 



Preface, ....... Page vii 

CHAPTER I. 

EXAMINATION OP MR COMBE'S HYPOTHESIS, THAT THE WORLD IS CONSTI- 
TUTED ON THE PRINCIPLE OF SLOW AND PROGRESSIVE IMPROVEMENT 
— GENERAL VIEW OF THE SUBJECT. 

Mr Combe's analogies in support of his Hypothesis — Analogies tending ' 
to prove the opposite of Mr Combe's doctrine— Evidence derived from 
History, and from Ancient Monuments, respecting the Condition of the 
Human Race in the Earliest Ages — Progress of Civilization over the 
World — Progress of Civilization in Britain, and the Causes which have 
given rise to the Improvement of its Inhabitants — Conclusion of the 
Argument. ....... 1 

CHAPTER II. 

MR COMBE'S OPPOSITION TO THE DOCTRINE OF DIVINES, RESPECTING THE 
ORIGINAL PERFECTION, AND SUBSEQUENT DEGENERACY, OF THE 
HUMAN RACE. 

Statement of the Doctrine of Divines — Mr Combe's Theory — Question, 
which of these accords best with the Evidence — Recent Origin of Man — 
State of man in Heathen Ages — Ruin of all the Ancient Empires, . 4-6 

CHAPTER III. 

THE REMEDY FOR EXISTING EVILS. 

First Propagation of Christianity, and its Effects — Moral and other 
Improvements derived from Christianity — On the Efficacy of Preaching 
as a Means of Improvement, . . . .. .61 

CHAPTER IV. 

EXAMINATION OF MR COMBE's VIEWS RESPECTING THE NATURAL LAWS. 

I. General view of the subject — Views of the French Philosophers 
respecting the Natural Laws — Dr Spurzheim's views — Mr Combe's views 



IT CONTENTS. 

— General Objection to the foregoing views — Bishop Butler's notion of 
a Divine Government — Bishop Butler's views quite opposite to Mr 
Combe's — Intuitive Knowledge — Case of the Bee — Paradoxical statement 
of the Benefits of Ignorance — New view of the Condition of Man — 
Transgression and Evil necessary — Infinite extent of the Natural Laws — 
Limited nature of the Human Faculties — How far the Natural Laws can 
be obeyed — Who are most likely to obey the Natural Laws. 

II. On the principles stated by Mr Combe as affording a Key to 
the Divine Government — Superior Authority of the Moral Law — Cases 
in which Physical Laws may be disobeyed — Superiority of the Moral 
Law. 

III. Considerations shewing that a Revealed Law was necessary — 
Conscience absolute and individual — Means of fixing the Rule of Right — 
All human Systems of Laws imperfect — Revelation necessary. 

IV. Perfection and Invariableness of the Revealed Law— Morality of 
Old Testament compared with that of the New — Particular precepts of 
the Jewish Law — Laws of Benevolence— .Law of Marriage — Faculties 
having reference to our Duties to God — The Revealed Law of our Duties 

to God — True Means of Improvement. . . . Page 86 

CHAPTER V. 

ON THE CONSTITUTION OF THE HUMAN FACULTIES, CONSIDERED IN 
RELATION TO THEIR RESPECTIVE OBJECTS. 

Main defect of Mr Combe's System — His omission of a Future State — 
Present condition of Man — Phrenology assumed to be true — Scheme of 
he Faculties — Propensities — Sentiments : — Scheme of the Intellectual 
Faculties — Position and grouping of the Cerebral Organs — General remarks 
on the system. . ... . . . 140 

CHAPTER VI. 

ON MR COMBE'S PRINCIPLE OF THE SUPREMACY OF THE MORAL 
SENTIMENTS AND INTELLECT, AND ON CONSCIENCE. 

Bishop Butler's view respecting Conscience — Mr Combe's view — 
Supremacy of Moral Sentiments — Examination of Mr Combe's view of 
Supremacy — The Moral Faculties insufficient of themselves— Distinction 
between the Animal and Moral powers — Relative Dignity and Harmony 
of the Faculties — Office of the Intellect — Informing Moral Judgment — 
Moral effect of various Powers — Conscience, as explained by Dr Chalmers 
— Conscience premonitive, approving, or condemning — Illustration of 
the working of Conscience — Offences arising from the Higher Sentiments 
— All are conscious of Sin. . . . . . 181 



CONTENTS. V 

CHAPTER VII. 

ON THE SCRIPTURE DOCTRINE OF HUMAN DEPRAVITY. 

Theological view of Human Depravity — Phrenological view of the Fall 
and its consequences — Proofs of degeneracy — Means of Improvement 
— Probable Results of a Knowledge of the Natural Laws — Probable 
Abuses of the Natural Laws — The Natural Laws no Safeguards to 
Virtue — Phrenology affords no means of regenerating the World — True 
Remedy for Human Depravity, .... Page 214 

CHAPTER VIII. 

OBJECTION TO THE PARADISAICAL STATE OF OUR FIRST PARENTS 
CONSIDERED. 

Mr Combe's Objections to the Paradisaical State — Unphilosophical 
Nature of Mr Combe's Objections — Hypothetical Answers to Mr Combe's 
Objections, .»..».. 237 

CHAPTER IX. 



I. Objection to the Doctrine that Death was brought upon Man as the 
punishment of Sin, considered — Mr Combe's view of Death — Theological 
view of Death — Mr Combe transgresses the limits of Philosophical Inquiry 
— Reason affords no light as to the Primitive State of Man — Special 
Objections hypothetically answered — Mr Combe's views only apply to our 
Present Condition — Diseases, &c. attributed to Infringement of the Natural 
Laws — The Natural Laws will never be perfectly obeyed — Mr Combe's 
views of Death — Natural feelings of Man on the Prospect of Death. 

II. On the omission of a Future State — Omission of a Future State 
inexcusable — Phrenological Argument for a Future State — Natural An- 
ticipations — Partial views of Mr Combe — Natural Feelings coincide with 
Revelation — Mr Combe's System offers no Argument against Suicide, 246 

CHAPTER X. 

ON THE PAINS OF PARTURITION. 

Scripture views of the Pains of Parturition — Mr Combe's Views 
answered, .- . . . . . .273 

«2 



VI CONTENTS, 

CHAPTER XL 

ON THE RELATION BETWEEN SCIENCE AND SCRIPTURE. 

Opposite views stated by Mr Combe — Gross Inconsistency of Mr 
Combe's views — Religion and Philosophy ought to be studied separately 
— - Lord Bacon's rules for avoiding Heresy — Bacon's rules against mixing 
Divine and Human Knowledge — Proper spheres of Religion and Philo- 
sophy distinct — Meaning of Bacon's Rules, as applied by Mr Combe — 
Case of Galileo and the Cardinals — The Scriptures exhibit a Knowledge 
of Human Nature — On the means of Improving the Character — 
Spiritual Influence improves, but does not alter the Character — Charac- 
teristics of the Apostles — Sceptical Arguments — Diversities of Doctrine 

— Difficulties of Interpretation — Garbled Quotations from Bishop Taylor 

— Various Readings — Trials of Witches — Whether Science aids or is 
aided by Christianity — How Christianity promotes Science — On the 
Efficacy of Prayer — Case of Professor Leechman— His Explanations ■ 
and Admissions — Decision of the Assembly — Doctrine of the Church on 
Prayer — Dr Gordon's Views on the Subject of Prayer — Dr Chalmers's 
Views of Prayer — Limitations to the Doctrine — Prayer for Spiritual 
Blessings — Phrenological View of Prayer — Phrenological Argument for 
the Efficacy of Prayer ■ — On Spiritual Influence — Phrenology affects no 
Scripture Doctrine — Spiritual Influences inscrutable, . Page 278 

CHAPTER XII. 

ON CRIMINAL LEGISLATION. 

Mr Combe's View of Justice — Mr Combe's Views of Crime and Respon- 
sibility, considered — His objections to Retributive Punishment — Reasons 
for such Punishment — Punishment of the Criminal preventive of Crime 

— Punishment more benevolent than Deprivation of Liberty — Peniten- 
tiaries versus Transportation, .... 330 

CONCLUSION. 

Recapitulation — Laws of Propagation — Political views — Mr Combe's 
a Low System — Sciences generally misapplied at the first Discovery — 
Astrology — Alchemy — Cosmogonies — Premature Systematizing — 
Phrenology still in its Nonage — Rash Experiments deprecated — 
Conclusion, . . . . . . . 340 



PREFACE. 



I shall shortly state the circumstances which 
have induced me to come before the public with 
the present work. 

Mr Combe is now well known, not only in 
this country, but on the Continent, and in 
America, as the most able, zealous, and active 
supporter and propagator of the new Science of 
Phrenology, or the doctrine founded on the dis- 
coveries of Doctors Gall and Spurzheim. In 
the preface to the Essay which we are now 
about to consider, he says, that Phrenology 
appears to him " to be the clearest, the most 
complete, and best supported system of human 
nature which has hitherto been taught," and 
that he has " assumed it as the basis of his 
work." 

No one certainly could blame Mr Combe for 
adopting, in a work on the Constitution of Man, 
that system of human nature which he believed 
to be the best, and for making it the basis of his 
speculations \ but, not contented with this, he has 
attacked our divines as guilty of a gross neglect 
of duty in not at once adopting the same views, 



Vlll PREFACE. 



and following them out in all their consequences, 
in their instructions to the people. 

Against this there appear, even at first sight, 
several very serious and cogent objections ; and 
one of them is, that even supposing it universally 
admitted, (which is at present very far from being 
the case,) that Phrenology is established on a 
perfectly solid foundation of facts, and that it 
affords a clear and perfect view of human nature, 
our divines are not, and cannot be supposed to 
be, so conversant with its principles and details, 
as to be able to teach them to their flocks, or to 
combine them in any satisfactory way with the 
doctrines of Christianity. It is only a very few 
years since Mr Combe, the chief living cultivator 
of this science, has adopted the views he now 
advocates. They have, since that time, under- 
gone various modifications ; and as they are now 
taught and expounded by him, they are only 
to be found fully stated in Mr Combe's own 
writings. 

It may farther be mentioned, that not only are 
our clergy, as a body, necessarily unacquainted 
with the doctrines of Phrenology, but most of 
them are even ignorant of the peculiar terms, or 
technical language, in which these doctrines are 
conveyed, as generally used by phrenological 
writers. Taking, then, the most favourable sup- 
position for Mr Combe, and supposing that they 
had been inclined generally to approve of his 
doctrines, it is quite impossible that they could 



PREFACE. IX 



at once begin to model their public instructions 
upon these doctrines ; and on the other hand, 
however objectionable they might consider them, 
it is not surprising that they should have hesi- 
tated to come forward with any formal answer 
to, or refutation of, his errors ; seeing that, in 
order to do either of these with any effect, it 
would first be necessary for them to study a 
science, and to learn a language, which they 
have never been taught, and to both of which 
most of them are entire strangers. 

I may here state, that, about fifteen years ago, 
I happened to have my attention turned to the 
subject of Phrenology, and that I have since 
made it more or less an object of study. Having 
become convinced of the truth of its general 
principles, I entered as a member of the Phreno- 
logical Society in the year 1822, aad thereafter 
took a considerable share in its proceedings ; 
and finally, was elected to the office of its Presi- 
dent, in the year 1825. 

Soon after that time, Mr Combe began to 
broach those doctrines on human responsibility, 
and other points, which were afterwards more 
fully developed in his " Constitution of Man*" 
These I opposed at the time, but without much 
effect : and Mr Combe having, in 1827, printed 
a small impression of that Essay for private 
.distribution, I also printed a little tract in answer 
to it, (which was likewise privately distributed,) 
but without being able to produce any material 



PREFACE. 



change in his views. At last, finding Mr Combe 
determined to persevere in these new doctrines, 
to introduce them regularly for discussion iri 
the Society, and to support them by articles in 
the Phrenological Journal, I resolved to break 
off all connection with both ; and acordingly, I 
gave up attending the Society's meetings, as did 
also several other members who entertained the 
same opinions of Mr Combe's views. I also, 
from that time, ceased from contributing to the 
Phrenological Journal. 

In June, 1828, Mr Combe published his work 
on the " Constitution of Man," nearly in the 
shape in which it now appears. He acknow- 
ledges that, at its first appearance, the book did 
not sell, as nearly seven years elapsed before 
another edition was called for. It was not 
until, by aid of the " Henderson Bequest," he 
was enabled to reduce the price, that it came to 
have any considerable circulation. Since that 
time, it appears, many thousand copies of it have 
been sold, chiefly among the operative classes 
in our manufacturing towns. It also appears 
that it has been translated into some foreign 
languages, and that it has been widely circu- 
lated in America. I am not surprised at this 
extensive sale of the essay, as, along with many 
errors, it contains much that is both instructive 
and amusing. It contains an account of the 
interesting discoveries of Gall and Spurzheim, 
together with other matter well adapted to 



PREFACE. XI 

the class of readers for whom it seems prin- 
cipally intended. This, with the extraordinary 
cheapness of the work, may account for its 
extensive sale. 

Although, during the first seven years after its 
publication, I did not consider an answer called 
for, seeing that it seemed to have excited little 
attention ; the case was altered after it appeared 
that the sale of it had increased to many thousands, 
among a class of readers not the best fitted to 
detect its fallacies ; nd that it was circulated 
chiefly in those places where the population had 
far outgrown the means of proper Church 
accommodation ; and where, of course, it was 
offered to the people not along with, but in lieu 
of, religious instruction. It was then pressed 
upon me by several friends, that the work ought 
to be answered, and that I ought to under- 
take the task, as I understood the subject of 
Phrenology, as maintained and taught by Mr 
Combe, and was able to address him in his own 
language ; and that as I had formerly studied his 
book with the view of answering it, the labour 
was already half performed. 

These reasons may perhaps be held sufficient 
to account for my engaging in the present 
undertaking. 

Mr Combe's work takes so wide a range, 
embraces or touches so vast a variety of subjects, 
and contains so great a multitude of errors, that 



Xll PREFACE. 



in order to answer it completely — to separate 
the chaff from the wheat — and, admitting what 
may be true, to expose and refute all that is 
erroneous, — it would be necessary to write, not 
a book, but a library. He says in his preface, 
that it is his wish to avoid controversy. He 
takes a strange method to avoid it, seeing that 
he has, in the course of his speculations, not 
merely declared war against most, if not all, of 
our secular institutions, but has openly attacked 
the clergy, and denounced as erroneous almost 
every article of faith, with regard to the past and 
present condition of the human race, which is 
generally held by them on the authority of 
Scripture. 

I shall here mention some of the points on 
which Mr Combe attacks the doctrines of our 
divines. 

There are, first, the doctrines of the Original 
Perfection of Man, — the Fall, — and the con- 
sequent Depravity of our Nature. Here are 
three most important points, lying at the founda- 
tion of the whole scheme of the Christian faith, 
which Mr Combe denounces as errors, on grounds 
the most frivolous, false, and unphilosophical. 

We have next an objection to the Paradisaical 
State of our First Parents before the Fall, foun- 
ded on a mere fancy which he has adopted, that 
certain of the faculties of man are adapted to a 
world in which pain, danger, and death are 
elements in his condition, and, therefore, he 



PREFACE. Xlll 

imagines, would be un suited to a state from 
which these were excluded. 

Then we have an objection to the theological 
doctrine that Death was brought upon man as 
the Punishment of Sin, founded on the assump- 
tion that death is inseparable from the nature of 
an organized being, and that, therefore, it must 
have been an original institution of the Creator. 

We have an objection to the belief, (founded 
on a passage in Genesis,) that the Pains of 
Child-birth were part of the punishment inflicted 
on Woman at the Fall. Mr Combe maintains, 
that the pains alluded to are not an institution 
of the Creator at all, but are caused by a dis- 
obedience of some unknown Natural Laws. 

With regard to the Natural Laws themselves, 
(which are at present universally disobeyed, for 
this, among other reasons, that nobody knows 
what they are,) Mr Combe's system proceeds on 
a principle directly opposite to that of Chris- 
tianity. That system aims at improving the 
moral nature of man in the first place, holding 
that, if this were attained, all other improve- 
ment would necessarily follow. Mr Combe, 
on the contrary, maintains that, in order to 
improve the moral nature of man, we must first 
improve his physical condition ; and, accordingly, 
he directs our attention almost exclusively to 
the petty details of diet, clothing, exercise, &c. 
" what we shall eat, and what we shall drink, 
and wherewithal we shall be clothed." 

b 



XIV PREFACE. 

In regard to another most important point, 
his system is the reverse of that recommended 
in Scripture. We are there directed " to set our 
affections on things above, and not on things 
that are on the earth." Mr Combe, on the 
contrary, in his Essay, (intended, it will be 
observed, as a practical manual of conduct, for 
the use chiefly of the lower classes,) omits all 
consideration of a future state, and rests all the 
motives to good conduct on the consequences of 
that conduct in the present life. 

With respect to Revelation, as Mr Combe's 
system is not founded on it, he had no occa- 
sion to speak of it at all. He has done so, 
however, and has written an entire chapter on 
the Connection between Science and Scripture. 
In this, and throughout his book, though he 
seems to admit the reality of revelation, it is 
perfectly clear that he entertains no confidence 
in its power and efficacy as an instrument for 
the improvement of the human race. Indeed, 
he seems to consider it as little entitled to atten- 
tion in any respect, as he represents it as being 
so obscure, or so corrupted in the text, that no 
positive reliance can be placed on any thing it 
contains.* 

* I have here omitted a sentence of my original Preface, in 
which I referred to a passage in Mr Combe's book, where I had 
supposed him to state, that the precepts of Christianity are 
" scarcely more suited to human nature and circumstances in this 
world, than the command to fly would be to the nature of the 
horse." I am satisfied that, in this instance, I have somewhat 
misapprehended Mr Combe's meaning. The words do occur, but 



PREFACE. XV 



Lastly, he states views with regard to a 
Special Providence, and the efficacy and uses of 
Prayer, which are totally at variance with the 
doctrines of every Christian Church. 

The above may serve as a specimen, — but it 
is quite clear that we are yet merely on the 
threshold, — that Mr Combe has but just broken 
ground before the walls of our Zion, and that 
he already contemplates still greater triumphs. 
Indeed, he has not left it to inference, but has 
openly declared his aim to be nothing less than 
to plant the standard of Phrenology on the very 
pinnacle of the Temple, and to make our pulpits 
resound with the preaching of — " The Natural 
Laws!" He loudly accuses our divines as blind 
guides, because they have not already adopted 
these in their instructions to their flocks, instead 
of the clear and simple morality, and the sublime 
and consoling doctrines, of the Gospel. 

Let it be observed, that in entering upon my 
present undertaking, I do not come forward for 
the purpose of defending Christianity, which I 
look upon as far removed above any risk of 
injury from such attacks, — but to vindicate Phre- 
nology from the reproach which has been brought 
upon it by some of its supporters, and by none 
more than Mr Combe, of its being hostile to, or 

they are used conditional \y, and in reference to special circum- 
stances. I still consider the passage objectionable, but not in the 
way T had at first supposed. 



XVI PREFACE. 



incompatible with, Christianity. Believing-, as I 
do, that Phrenology has a foundation in nature, 
that its general principles are true, and that it 
must ultimately lead to highly important results, 
I am anxious to relieve ; i n ds of those who 

have conceived a prejud i ;ist it (an extremely 

natural one under the ostances) from the 

idea that it leads to doctrines of a dangerous and 
anti-Christian tendency ; and I hope to be able 
to shew, not only that there is no inconsistency 
between it and any doctrine of Scripture, but 
that, as far as the two subjects admit of being 
compared, there exists a perfect harmony and 
correspondence between them. 

In adverting to the objections which have 
been made to his views, as inconsistent with the 
doctrines of Scripture, Mr Combe states in the 
ninth chapter of his work : — " It is gratifying to 
observe, that these objections have not been ur^ed 
by any individual of the least eminence in theo- 
logy, or countenanced bv persons of enlarged 
views of Christian doctrine." In a letter addressed 
bv him to Dr Neill, as one of the patrons of the 
University of Edinburgh, lately published among: 
the documents in reference to his claims as a 
candidate for the Logic Chair, he endeavours to 
bring this specially home to individuals. He 
there states, — " The late Reverend Dr Andrew 
Thomson attended a course of my lectures on 
Phrenology in 1822 or ]S-2o, and survived the 
publication of the ' Constitution of Man' (a copy 



PREFACE. XVli 

of which I presented to him) for nearly three 
years ; and although he conducted the Christian 
Instructor, and was a zealous, ready, and power- 
ful writer, vividly alive to the purity of the faith 
which he espoused* yet he never published a 
word against that book. I sat for several years in 
his church, and was personally acquainted with 
him, and yet I never received even any private 
remonstrance from him on the subject." 

It is not a little surprising, that Mr Combe 
should either have forgotten, or never have been 
acquainted with, the fact which I am now to 
mention. In the end of the year 1828, on an 
application being made to Dr Thomson to 
become a director of the Edinburgh Infant 
School, then in the course of being established, 
he declined having any connection with that 
institution, solely on the ground that Mr Combe 
was to be a director, and that he did not 
approve of Mr Combe's principles. It would 
appear that, in some communications which 
passed on this subject, between Dr Thomson 
and Mr Combe's friends, the latter represented 
this to be persecution, — a charge which Dr 
Thomson indignantly repelled. I have now 
before me a copy of a letter on the subject, 
addressed by Dr Thomson to the late Mr William 
Ritchie, a particular friend of Mr Combe, in 
which he says : — " I need not repeat the opinion 
I formerly expressed in regard to Mr Combe. 
I adhere to it without qualification or reserve. 



XV111 PREFACE. 

And yet I cannot see it to be persecution of him, 
that I should refuse to be connected with a 
voluntary association, of which he is to be a 
member, when I am convinced that his opinions 
and his reputation would be injurious to the cause 
which that association is formed to promote."* 
I have not seen any of the previous correspon- 
dence, containing the opinion which Dr Thomson 
had expressed in regard to Mr Combe ; but it is 
quite obvious what must have been its nature. 
I should add, that the above quoted letter is 
dated 22d December, 1828, six months after the 
publication of the " Constitution of Man." 

Mr Combe refers also to another eminent 
pillar of the Church. — " Farther," he says, " Dr 
Chalmers published his Bridgewater Treatise 
several years after my work had appeared ; and 
although the subjects in his book and mine are 
closely analogous, he has stated no objections 
whatever to my views, which is quite inconcei- 
vable if he had regarded them as dangerous and 
unfounded in nature, and been prepared to refute 
them." With submission, the circumstances here 
referred to lead to a conclusion the very opposite 
of that which is here stated by Mr Combe. It 
being the case that Dr Chalmers published a 
book a very few years after the publication of 

* It is proper to mention, that the copy letter above quoted was 
sent to me by a member of Dr Thomson's family, with a request 
that 1 would make it public — so as to remove the impression which 
might be created by the passage now referred to in Mr Combe's 
letter to Dr Neill. 



PREFACE. XIX 

this work of Mr Combe's, and on a subject, as 
he says, very closely analogous, is it conceivable 
that Dr Chalmers would have entirely omitted 
all mention of that work if he had approved of 
the doctrines which it contained ? Knowing the 
high character of Dr Chalmers, and how much 
he must be above any feeling of jealousy in a 
matter of this kind, I say it is inconceivable that 
he should not, in such circumstances, have taken 
some notice of Mr Combe's book, if he had 
considered it to be deserving of a favourable 
notice. 

Lastly, Mr Combe has in this letter referred 
to the announcement of my intended publication ; 
as to which he says, — " I can hardly anticipate 
that Mr Scott will consider himself called on to 
supply the supposed omission of the two learned 
Doctors in Divinity above named. If, however, 
I shall be mistaken in this, and if Mr Scott shall 
make any attempt to shew that my work contains 
doctrines inconsistent with sound Christianity, it 
will be sufficient for me to remind you and the 
public, that Mr Scott is a layman, that he enjoys 
no reputation for theological learning, and that 
his opinions, therefore, are not of authority to 
decide the question." 

What Mr Combe has here stated of me is all 
literally and strictly true. It is true I am a 
layman, as Mr Combe himself is, and that I 
enjoy no reputation for theological learning. I 
never heard, and do not now understand, that 



XX PREFACE. 



Mr Combe enjoys any reputation for theological 
learning*, and, therefore, so far as mere authority 
goes, his opinion will probably not have greater 
weight than mine. I may also observe, that if 
Mr Combe, a layman, has written any thing 
erroneous in reference to Christianity, there can 
be no objection to his being answered by a lay- 
man. Still less can there be any objection to 
such an answer coming from me, when it is 
recollected that his attacks against the teachers 
of our religion are professedly founded on the 
doctrines of Phrenology, which doctrines cir- 
cumstances had led me to make a subject of 
study ; and therefore, I may be supposed better 
prepared to meet him on this particular ground 
than those who are comparatively strangers to 
these doctrines. 

I have nothing more to add here, except to 
express my gratitude to those friends who have 
favoured me with their advice, encouragement, 
and assistance, during the progress of my little 
work. To one of these my acknowledgments 
are particularly due, without whose assistance I 
should hardly have been able to finish my under- 
taking, even in the imperfect manner in which, 
I am well aware, some parts of it have been 
executed. 

Edinburgh, August 5, 1836. 



THE 

HARMONY OF PHRENOLOGY 

WITH SCRIPTURE. 



CHAPTER I. 

EXAMINATION OF MR COMBE's HYPOTHESIS, THAT THE WORLD IS CONSTI- 
TUTED ON THE PRINCIPLE OF SLOW AND PROGRESSIVE IMPROVEMENT.—. 
GENERAL VIEW OF THE SUBJECT. 

In the commencement of his work on the Consti- 
tution of Man, Mr Combe draws a parallel between 
the inferior animals and the human race, and the cir- 
cumstances in which they are respectively placed. He 
observes, most truly, that animals exhibit a much more 
simple constitution than man does; that, whether their 
nature is wild and ferocious, or gentle and inoffensive, 
they are uniformly and consistently so; and that each 
tribe is placed in circumstances obviously suited to its 
character and habits. Man, on the other hand, presents 
anomalies and inconsistencies without end, — at once 
destructive and benevolent, selfish and generous — capa- 
ble of the grossest sensuality, cruelty, and deceit ; or of 
high attainments in wisdom, piety, and virtue. " But 
how," says Mr Combe, " shall these conflicting tendencies 
be reconciled, and how can external circumstances be 
devised that shall accord with such heterogeneous ele- 
ments ?" These questions have puzzled philosophers in 
all ages. Mr Combe thinks he is able to solve the 
enigma. 

A 



2 EXAMINATION OF 

It is to be regretted, that, in entering upon this most 
interesting field of speculation, Mr Combe should have 
thought it necessary, at the very outset, to come into 
collision with certain doctrines which are generally 
supposed to lie at the very foundation of Christianity, — 
I allude to the doctrines of the Fall, and the consequent 
depravity of the human race* 

Mr Combe had no occasion whatever to enter upon 
topics like these. If it had been his wish to treat his 
subject in a manner purely philosophical, and to consider 
the state and prospects of man, as far as he was able, 
by the lights of natural reason, he might have done so 
without trenching upon ground which is withiu the 
peculiar province of revelation. He might, and, as a 
philosopher, he was bound to have confined himself to 
that part of the history of the human race to which we 
have access from authentic human testimony, or existing 
monuments; and if, from facts thus established, when 
compared with the actual state of the race in various 
parts of the world, he could, by a legitimate induction? 
succeed in establishing any general laios respecting the 
progress of society in times past, there might then have 
been rational grounds for drawing conclusions as to the 
probabilities of this progress in ages to come. In 
choosing this course, Mr Combe would have avoided 
all risk of shocking the prejudices, or insulting the faith 
of any class of professing Christians, or of awakening, 
what he so much deprecates, the angry feelings of reli- 
gious controversy. 

But Mr Combe has not chosen to take this safe, 
rational, simple, and truly philosophical course. In- 
stead of a regular induction, drawn from an extensive 
and well arranged collection of facts, he sets out with an 
hypothesis of the most sweeping description, drawn from 
analogies the most remote* and premises the most slender 



MR COMBE S HYPOTHESIS. 3 

and insufficient. This hypothesis is announced in general 
terms as follows: — "The constitution of this world does 
not look like a system of optimism. It appears to be 
arranged, in all its departments? on the 'principle of slow 
and progressive improvement" 

In support of this position, Mr Combe first refers to 
the facts recently discovered by geologists, shewing that 
this earth has, in very remote periods of time, undergone 
various revolutions, and has been covered by various 
races of vegetables and animals, successively produced 
and successively destroyed, all tending to prepare it for 
the residence of its present inhabitants, and particularly 
of man, — the most important of them all. "At last," 
he says, "man was created, and since that period there 
has been little alteration in the physical circumstances of 
the globe." 

After some general observations respecting the powers 
and faculties of man, and their adaptation to the circum- 
stances in which he is placed, he goes on to draw an 
analogy between the progress of the human race and 
that of the physical world. " If the physical history of 
the globe," he observes, "clearly indicates progression 
in an advancing series of changes, the civil history of 
man equally proclaims the march, though often vacil- 
lating and slow, of moral and intellectual improvement;" 
and he takes for an example of this improvement the 
progress from barbarism to civilization in our own 
country,-^- and upon this slender shred of a very remote 
analogy, he thinks he has established a new theory of the 
Divine arrangements, of universal application, which is to 
explain the secret purposes of Providence in regard to the 
human race, " and vindicate the ways of God to man." 

He now brings forward his views in a more definite 
form, and states them in opposition to those generally 
received. I shall give them in his own words; 



* EXAMINATION OF 

" In our own country, two views of the constitution of 
the world and of human nature have long been preva- 
lent, differing widely from each other, and which, if 
legitimately followed out, would lead to distinct practical 
results. The one is, that the world, including both the 
physical and moral departments, contains within itself the 
elements of improvement, which time will evolve, and bring 
to maturity ; it having been constituted on the principle of 
a progressive system, like the acorn in reference to the oak. 

" The other hypothesis is, that the world was perfect 
at first, but fell into derangement, continues in disorder, 
and does not contain within itself the elements of its own 
rectification." 

It is quite obvious, that in adopting the former of 
these views, in opposition to the latter, Mr Combe openly 
maintains opinions, in regard to the past and present 
condition of the human race, directly at variance with 
the doctrines of our divines, and of our national church. 
He nowhere pretends to conceal this; on the contrary, 
he constantly, throughout his whole work, refers to the 
doctrine of the corruption of human nature as a funda- 
mental error, which has been adopted by divines in 
consequence of their entire ignorance of a true system of 
mental philosophy. A great part of his introductory 
chapter is devoted to shewing the causes of this and 
various other errors into which he supposes them to have 
fallen, and pointing out to them a course by which they 
may promote the intellectual and moral improvement of 
mankind more effectually than they have hitherto been 
able to do. 

It may here be remarked, in the first place, that the 
question respecting the corruption of human nature, or, 
in other words, its degeneracy from its original state, is 
not a question dependent on any philosophical theory, 
or system of mental philosophy. It is- purely a question 



of faet, to be determined by the ordinary means by 
which we acquire information with regard to other facts. 
If Mr Gombe thinks he is in possession of evidence 
sufficient to prove that the. moral and intellectual 
faculties of man are at present in a state equal or 
superior to that in which they existed at his creation, 
let him produce this evidence, and we shall give it all 
due consideration. But it must be quite clear, that 
any evidence upon which we can come to a conclusion 
on such a subject, can have no connection with the 
peculiar nature of the faculties themselves with which 
man is endowed. It is of no consequence, as to the 
point at issue, whether man possesses sentiments of 
benevolence, veneration, and conscientiousness, or 
whether he is endued with propensities of destruc- 
tiveness and combativeness. The question is, whether 
these, and all the other faculties, propensities, and sen- 
timents which form part of his nature, are now in an 
equally perfect state as in the day when he came from 
the hands of his Creator. If Mr Combe can prove that 
they are so, Or that, instead of degenerating, they have 
actually improved, it will be time enough for him to 
find fault with the doctrines of divines on the subject of 
human degeneracy. 

To illustrate what I mean when I say, that it is of no 
consequence, as to this question, wliat the faculties are, 
I shall suppose the question to be, whether our breed 
of horses has degenerated from the time when it was 
first introduced into this island ? In this case, it would 
not in the least tend to a solution of the question, to 
enter into any detail respecting the anatomy of the 
horse, or to shew that, at his first introduction, he had 
exactly four legs as at present; that he had ; then, as 
now, two eyes, two ears, two nostrils; that the form of 
the neck, the hoof, the pastern, and every part, was. 

a 2 



6 EXAMINATION OF 

similar to what it is now. All this, we w r ould answer, 
has nothing to do with the question. What we want to 
know is, not what is his form, and what are Iris members, 
but has he, in his entire nature, degenerated or improved? 
Are his size, strength, or swiftness in the race, diminished 
or increased ? Does he shew more or less sagacity, or is 
his average age lesser or greater than it. was ? 

As it is obvious that these questions have no connec- 
tion with the structure, form, and anatomy of the animal, 
so the question alluded to w r ith regard to the degeneracy 
or improvement of man, is totally independent of any 
system we may happen to adopt with regard to the 
structure of his faculties. 

Another remark that occurs on this part of Mr 
Combe's speculation, is this, that in his statement of the 
several systems, he mixes up two questions which are 
perfectly distinct. The one is, — Has man, as he at 
present exists, degenerated from his original state ; or is 
he, and has he always been, from the beginning, in a 
state of slow and gradual improvement? Another, and 
quite a separate question, is, — supposing it to be shewn 
that the human race is now in an improving state, — 
what are the means by which that improvement has 
been brought about in time past, and what are the best 
means for promoting this improvement now, and for 
raising man to the highest perfection of which his 
nature is capable? Are his present faculties, such 
as they are, sufficient for this purpose ? or does he 
require the aids of revelation, and of spiritual influences, 
to lead him to the ultimate ends of his being, and to 
open to him the sources of his highest happiness? 
These are different questions, and will require to be 
separately considered ; and although, in regard to the 
last of them, there may be some colour for supposing 
that something may depend upon our possessing a true> 



MR COMBES HYPOTHESIS. 7 

system of mental philosophy, I think it may appear here- 
after that Mr Combe places far too high a reliance upon 
his own views of our mental faculties, and very much 
undervalues the knowledge which divines, in common 
with the rest of mankind, have hitherto possessed on 
the subject. 

I may here repeat my regret, that, in coming to the 
consideration of both these questions, Mr Combe had 
not confined himself to a statement of his own views, 
instead of going out of his way to attack those of others. 
If the first view given here of the constitution of the 
world had been the true one, and if it could have been 
established bv fair logical deductions from a sufficient 
number of undoubted facts, Mr Combe needed not to 
have troubled himself with any other that could be 
proposed. He might have satisfied himself with main- 
taining his own doctrine, and trusted to the harmony 
which must ever subsist between all truths, to recon- 
cile his conclusions with a correct interpretation of 
Scripture. 

The geologists who maintained, from the appearances 
of the different rocks, and other materials forming the 
outer crust of the earth, that this world must have 
existed many thousand years before the period generally 
assigned to the creation, at first excited great alarm in 
many religious and well-meaning persons, from the 
apprehension that their speculations would undermine 
the authority of the Mosaic writings. This alarm was 
unfounded, and is now no longer entertained. The 
geologists attacked no doctrine connected with Chris- 
tianity. They properly and philosophically confined 
themselves to the proof of a fact, which is now esta- 
blished by such an overwhelming mass of evidence, that 
it can no longer be questioned. Had Mr Combe fol- 
lowed their example, and employed himself in a diligenfe 



8 EXAMINATION OF 

investigation of the facts bearing upon the point at issue,. 
he probably would have come to different conclusions from: 
those which he has now adopted. At all 'events, while 
he confined himself strictly to facts, and to pure philoso- 
phical investigation, he need not have feared the hostility 
of the divines, and it was entirely out of his province to 
attack any of their doctrines. 

When Sir Isaac Newton proposed his theory of uni- 
versal gravitation as accounting for all the phenomena 
of the motions of the heavenly bodies, as well as of those 
on the surface of the globe, he did not encumber himself 
with attempting to disprove the vortices of Descartes, or 
the cycles and epicycles of other astronomers. He was 
quite satisfied with proving his own theoiy, which he 
placed upon the basis of a broad induction of well- 
observed facts, and rigid mathematical demonstration, 
and he left the admirers and supporters of other systems 
to maintain their own opinions, or reconcile them to the 
facts, as they best might. 

Mr Combe's procedure differs from this in two 
respects. He has attacked the opinions of others; and 
he has not established his own on any thing like a satis- 
factory basis. 

I shall, in what follows^ go more at large into an 
examination of his fundamental proposition, that the 
world has been constituted, with regard to man, on the 
principle of a progressive system ; and, after a full exami- 
nation of the evidence, I trust I shall be able to shew,: — 

1. That the analogy to be drawn from the geological 
facts, stated by Mr Combe himself, instead of support^ 
ing his general principle, leads to the very opposite 
conclusion. 

2. That throughout the whole range of organic 
existence, from which any analogies can be drawn appli- 
cable to this question, these are uniformly adverse to-; 



MR combe's hypothesis. 9 

Mr Combe's theory, and in favour of the opinions he 
opposes. 

3. That as far as any conclusion can be drawn from 
history, from the monuments of ancient art, and other 
remains of antiquity, we are led irresistibly to the belief, 
that the most ancient nations have been as far, or farther 
advanced in moral and intellectual attainments, than 
those which succeeded them. 

4. That the course of civilization has, from the first 
dawn of history until now, proceeded uniformly and 
exclusively from those countries which were first 
inhabited, and that no instance can be adduced of 
any barbarous nation, which, by its own unassisted 
efforts, ever advanced a single step in the career of 
moral and intellectual improvement. 

5. That the inhabitants of this island have only been 
raised from barbarism to civilization, by successive con- 
quests and intermixture with other nations, and by other 
extraordinary stimulating influences operating on the 
national mind, and coming from without, including, as 
the most important, the influence of Christianity. 

I shall then draw a closer comparison between the 
two opposite systems, — that of Mr Combe on the one 
hand, and that of our divines and theologians on the 
other, and shall endeavour to shew which of them is 
most consistent with the facts, as far as these can be 
ascertained by natural reason, and a careful examination 
of evidence. And, lastly, adverting to the accusations 
whfch Mr Combe has brought against our religious 
instructors, and their mode of teaching, I shall endeavour 
to shew, both on a larger and a more confined scale, 
what good has already been accomplished by their 
means, leaving the reader to draw his own conclusions 
as to what is likely to be done, by a more extended 
application of the same means in future. 



10 EXAMINATION OF 



I. — Mr Combe's Analogies in support ofJiis Hypothesis. 

My first position then is, that the analogies relied on 
by Mr Combe to prove his general principle^ do, if any 
thing, prove the reverse. 

If we attend to the geological facts he enumerates, to 
what do they amount ? Does it appear from them that 
the physical world, as originally constituted, " contained 
within itself the elements of improvement, which it 
required only time to bring to maturity ?" The facts 
are directly in the teeth of such a supposition. I shall 
take the statement of them in Mr Combe's own words : 

" The globe, in the first state in which the imagina- 
tion can venture to consider it, says Sir H. Davy, 
appears to have been a fluid mass, with an immense 
atmosphere, revolving in space round the sun. By its 
cooling, a portion of its atmosphere was probably con^ 
densed into water, which occupied a part of its surface. 
In this state no forms of life, such as now belong to our 
system, could have inhabited it. The crystalline rocks, 
or, as they are called by geologists, the primary rocks, 
which contain no vestiges of a former order of things, 
were the result of the first consolidation on its surface. 
Upon the farther cooling, the water, which, more or 
less, had covered it, contracted; depositions took place; 
shell-fish and coral insests were created^ and began their 
labours. Islands appeared in the midst of the ocean, 
raised from the deep by the productive , energies of 
millions of zoophytes. These islands became covered 
with vegetables fitted to bear a high temperature, such 
as palms, and various species of plants, similar to those 
which now exist in the hottest parts of the world. The 
submarine rocks of these new formations of land became 
covered with aquatic vegetables, on which various. 



MR COMBE'S ANALOGIES. 11 

species of shell-fish and common fishes found their 
nourishment. As the temperature of the globe became 
lower, species of the oviparous reptiles appear to have 
been created to inhabit it ; and the turtle, crocodile, and 
various gigantic animals of the Saurian (lizard) kind 
seem to have haunted the bays and waters of the primitive 
lands. But in this state of things there appears to have 
been no order of events similar to the present. Immense 
volcanic explosions seem to have taken place, accom- 
panied by elevations and depressions of the surface of the 
globe, producing mountains, and causing new and exten* 
sive depositions from the primitive ocean. The remains of 
living beings, plants, fishes, birds, and oviparous reptiles, 
are found in the strata of rocks, which are the monuments 
and evidence of these changes. When these revolutions 
became less frequent, and the globe still more cooled, 
and inequalities of temperature were established by 
means of the mountain chains, more perfect animals 
became its inhabitants, such as the mammoth, mega* 
lonix, megatherium, and gigantic hyena, many of which 
have become extinct. Five successive races of plants, 
and four successive races of animals, appear to have 
been created and swept away by the physical revolutions 
of the globe, before the system of things became so 
permanent as to fit the world for man. In none of 
these formations, whether called secondary, tertiary, or 
diluvial, have the fossil remains of man, or any of his 
works, been discovered. At last, man was created, and 
since that period there has been little alteration in the 
physical circumstances of the globe." 

These are Mr Combe's statements, and not mine ; and 
assuming them to be correct, what is their amount ? Not 
certainly that the physical world "contained the elements 
of improvement within itself," and that these were 
" evolved and brought to maturity" by the sole operation 



12 EXAMINATION OF 

of " time ;" but, on the contrary, that it required various 
successive exertions of creative power, before the jarring 
elements were reduced into order, and matters were 
brought into the state in which we now see them. 

In short, the history of the physical world, previous 
to the creation of man, presents us, according to Mr 
Combe's own account, with little else than a succession 
of creations and revolutions; in other words, so many 
distinct acts of Almighty power, by which successive 
alterations were induced upon its original constitution ; 
and how, from a statement like this, Mr Combe can 
come to the conclusion, that the world " contains 
within itself the elements of improvement, which time 
will evolve and bring to maturity," I confess, surpasses 
my comprehension. To an ordinary understanding it 
does appear a prodigious non sequitur. The argument, 
as he states it, just comes to this. The world, as at 
first framed, contained so little of the elements of 
improvement within itself, that it required four or five 
successive exertions of creative power to bring it into a 
state, fitted for the reception of human inhabitants; 
therefore, (according to Mr Combe's new principles of 
analogical reasoning,) " the world contains within itself 
the elements of improvement, which time will evolve and 
bring to maturity, it having been constituted on the 
principle of a progressive system, like the acorn in 
reference to the oak ;" or, it may be stated more shortly 
thus, — The world originally did not contain within itself 
the principles of improvement, therefore it does contain 
within itself the principles of improvement. — Q. E. D. 

This is Mr Combe's logic. According to that which I 
believe to be more current in the world, the conclusion 
would be the direct contrary. If an analogical argument 
of this kind is good for any thing, it is good to this 
extent, — that if in one department of the Creator's 



13 

works we find a certain principle or method uniformly 
acted on, we may consider it probable, that the same 
principle or method will appear in his proceedings in 
other departments. For example, if it appears, that 
in the physical world the Creator has not left matters 
to proceed according to the blind operation of qualities 
impressed upon it from the beginning, but that he has 
at certain epochs interfered, and, by successive inter- 
positions of his power, induced certain changes upon his 
original work, throughout a long series of ages, — if this 
be true, as Mr Combe's statement indicates, there is 
reason, from analogy, to conclude that, in the moral 
world, the interference of the Almighty mind may also 
be required at certain epochs, in order to produce those 
changes in the state and character of our race, which 
are necessary to fulfil his intentions respecting us. I 
say we may regard this as probable, from analogy. I do 
not state that it is certain ; but only that it would be 
quite consistent with the usual modes of operation of 
Deity, as we have seen them exemplified in the physical 
world, if it were so. 

It is extraordinary, that while Mr Combe states the 
principle of the argument from analogy quite correctly, 
he should draw a conclusion in perfect opposition to 
that principle. " The more we discover of creation," 
he observes, " the more conspicuously does uniformity 
of design appear to pervade its every department. We 
perceive here the physical world gradually improved and 
prepared for man." We do find it to have been so 
improved and prepared, but how ? Not by the unassisted 
evolution of its own elements ; not by any principle of 
improvement inherent within itself: but by successive 
exertions of the same Almighty power by which it was 
originally framed. The physical world, according to 
Mr Combe's account, has been improved and prepared 

B 



14 EXAMINATION OF MR COMBERS ANALOGIES. 

for man, in the same way as a field is improved and 
prepared by a skilful husbandman to receive its destined 
crop ; and if we are to reason from analbgy, are we to 
conclude, that, having once introduced man upon the 
scene, the author of his being has from that moment 
abandoned all active superintendence of his welfare? 
Is the moral world of so much less consequence than 
the physical, as not to deserve, or are its elements so 
much simpler and more regular in their action as not 
to require, such superintendence ? 

This argument from analogy is in every view the 
most unfortunate that can be conceived, as it leads, not 
remotely or doubtfully, but by direct and obvious 
inference, to conclusions the very reverse of those drawn 
by Mr Combe ; and these conclusions are, as might be 
expected, supported in the fullest manner by the state- 
ments of Scripture, and the undoubted facts of history.* 

* As in the physical world Mr Combe has stated that four or five 
successive creations of plants and animals have taken place, in order to- 
render it fit for the habitation of man, so in the moral world there have 
been already five great periods or epochs, where God expressly inter- 
fered, in an extraordinary and miraculous manner, for the purposes of 
influencing the destinies of the human race. 

The first of these occurred at the Fall, when God pronounced the 
sentence of death upon man, as the punishment of his disobedience ; 
and, at the same time, gave the first promise of a Saviour, who was to 
restore his fallen nature. 

The second occurred at the Flood, when God interfered to destroy the 
whole inhabitants of the earth, with the exception of the family of Noah 
and his sons, who were miraculously saved in an ark, and with whom, 
after the Flood, he made a new covenant. 

The third occasion took place at the Call of Abraham, when, the 
whole race having again fallen into idolatry, God made choice of an 
individual and family to preserve the knowledge and worship of his- 
name. 

The fourth great epoch occurred when the Israelites were brought 
out of Egypt, and when the Law was delivered to them by Moses, 
previous to their settlement in the land of Canaan. 

The fifth and last occasion of miraculous interference, and to which 



ANALOGIES OPPOSED TO A PROGRESSIVE SYSTEM. 15 



II. — Other Analogies tending to prove the opposite of Mr Combe's 
doctrine. 

But if, in regard to the physical and moral world, 
considering each <s.s a whole, and looking to the pro- 
cedure of their Author respecting them throughout a 
course of ages, there is reason to believe that they have 
both been constituted in such a manner as to require, 
his occasional interference in the manner described — 
the principle as to eacJi distinct act of creation seems to 
be the very reverse. From all that can be gathered of 
the history of the earth and its productions, either from 
observation of their past and present state, or from the 
researches of geologists, there appears nothing like pro- 
gressive creation or evolution of individuals or species in 
my department of nature. When a new species of 
plants or animals appears to have been created, it is not 
derived from an older and more imperfect one, but 
starts at once into existence, at the Almighty fiat, in all 
its completeness and perfection. Whatever length of 
time the species may be continued by ordinary genera- 
tion, the later offspring of the race acquire no new 
qualities. Through whatever number of generations, 
or length of ages, their remains are found accumulated, 
these remains, in each particular species, are all marked 
by the same type^ the oldest generations being equally 

all the rest were preparatory, took place at the advent of our Saviour, 
and the events consequent thereupon. 

I do not insist upon the views now incidentally thrown out, as of any 
great importance, or as adding any thing to the evidence or credibility 
of revelation ; but since Mr Combe has introduced the argument from 
analogy, I wish to shew to what issues such an argument may be easily 
carried ; and I am not aware that in doing so I have used it in other 
than a legitimate way, or have transgressed the bounds of fair analogical 
reasoning. 



16 ANALOGIES OPPOSED 

perfect as the most recent. There is no such thing as 
equivocal generation. One species of animals never 
produces another. The turtles and sauri of the pre- 
Adamite world, might have multiplied in their fens and 
shallow waters to the end of time, — they never would 
have produced the mammoth or the megatherium, the 
lion or the tiger. None of these would ever have pro- 
duced a human being. This is well understood by Mr 
Combe. He distinctly and correctly states, that each 
new race of plants or animals was the result of a separate 
act of creation ; and he states, moreover, in the very 
outset of his work, the general fact, that every creature, 
and every physical object, " has received its own definite 
constitution"* 

* In evidence of what I have stated on this point, I may refer to the 
following passage in Cuvier : " The following objection has already 
been started against ray conclusions, — Why may not the presently exis- 
ting races of land quadrupeds be mere modifications or varieties of those 
ancient races, which we now find in the fossil state, which modifications 
may have been produced by change of climate and other local circum- 
stances, and since raised to the present excessive difference, by the 
operation of similar causes during a long succession of ages ? 

" This objection may appear strOng to those who believe in the 
indefinite possibility of change of forms in organized bodies, and think 
that, during a succession of ages, and by alterations of habitudes, all the 
species may change into each other, or one of them give birth to all the 
rest. Yet, to those persons, the following answer may be given from 
their own system : if the species have changed by degrees, as they 
assume, we ought to find traces of this gradual modification. Thus, 
between the Palaotherium, and the species of our own days, we should 
be able to discover some intermediate forms, and yet no such discovery has 
ever been made. Since tne bowels of the earth have not preserved 
monuments of this strange genealogy, we have a right to conclude, that 
the ancient and now extinct species were as permanent in their forms 
and characters, as those which exist at present ; or, at least, that the 
catastrophe which destroyed them did not leave sufficient time for the 
production of the changes that are alleged to have taken place, "f 

After making some observations on the varieties produced in animals 
by domestication, and by the mixture of breeds effected by the con- 

•j- Curler's Essay on the Theory of the Earth, translated by Jameson, 4th Ed. p. 1H. 



TO A PROGRESSIVE SYSTEM. 17 

This being the case with regard to the successive 
races of plants and animals, in the ages preceding the 
creation of man, as far as can be discovered from the 
researches of geologists, what is our experience respec- 
ting those species with which the earth is furnished at 
present ? Do we find that the different genera and 
species of plants and animals now on the earth contain, 
each within itself, the elements of improvement ? Are 
the trees of the forest now of loftier growth, and more 
splendid dimensions, than those which originally covered 
the mountains of our globe ? Does the cedar now rear 
its umbrageous head in greater magnificence than it did 
in the days of Ezekiel, who describes it " with fair 
branches and with a shadowing shroud, and of an high 
stature, and having its top among the thick boughs ? 
The fir trees were not like his boughs, and the chestnut 
trees were not like his branches, nor any tree in the 
garden of God like unto him in beauty." Do we not 
know, on the contrary, that the glory of Lebanon is 
fallen, and that in the whole of that mountain range, 
once covered with the most magnificent forests, a few 
scattered remnants are all that remain, without the least 
prospect that its pristine honours will ever be restored ? 
Do we not find the same in all countries originally 
covered with wood, — that the existing trees are a 
dwarfish and insignificant race, when compared with 
those giants of the forest, of which the wrecks and ruins 
are here and there to be observed, or which have been 

trivance, and under the influence of man, and shewing that all these 
varieties are perfectly insignificant, and never amount to an alteration in 
the original and proper specific type, Cuvier comes to the conclusion, 
'"that animals have certain fixed and natural characters, which resist 
the effects of every kind of influence, whether proceeding from natural 
causes or human interference ; and we have not the smallest reason to 
suspect, that time has any more effect upon them than climate."* 

* Theory of the Earth, p. 122. 

b2 



18 ANALOGIES OPPOSED 

found preserved in an entire state in the marshes,, or 
buried fathoms deep in soil, the accumulation of ages ? 

But to come nearer the point at issue : Is there the 
smallest reason to believe that any existing species of 
animals has become improved or advanced in the scale 
of perfection, by virtue of a principle of progression 
inherent in its own nature, and which time has evolved 
and brought to maturity ? Does the lion now traverse 
the burning desert with a more lordly step, or shake the 
wilderness with a more appalling roar, than he did in the 
days of Moses, who refers to him as the type of every 
thing that is strong and terrible, or of Solomon, who 
compares his roaring to " the wrath of a king ?" Does 
the horse exhibit now more magnificent qualities, than 
those ascribed to him in the Book of Job ? And has man, 
with all his boasted wisdom and skill, " given the horse 
strength, has he clothed his neck with thunder ?" 

Does the hawk now fly more swiftly, or does the eagle 
mount up with a stronger wing, or make her nest 
higher in the rock, than in ages long past ? Are the 
goodly wings of the peacock adorned with more splendid 
colours, or are the feathers of the ostrich larger and 
finer, or her flight swifter, than in the days of Job ? 
" What time she lifteth up herself on high^ she scorneth 
the horse and his rider." 

I refer to the above passages, merely as occurring in 
the most ancient writings in the world, to shew that the 
productions of nature described in them, possessed, up- 
wards of three thousand years ago, the same qualities as 
they do now, and that no improvement or alteration ever 
has taken place in these qualities. In the absence of all 
evidence to the contrary, this might be quite sufficient ; 
but we are not left to mere negative evidence, or the 
descriptions of ancient writers on this important point. 
We have the positive evidence of undisputed facts, that 



TO A PROGRESSIVE SYSTEM. 19 

the existing races of animals have undergone no change 
as far back as it is possible to trace them. For this, we 
have the express authority of Baron Cuvier, whose judg- 
ment, on a point of this kind, will not be disputed.* 

We have, therefore, every kind of evidence, positive 
and negative, for asserting, that neither in the vegetable 
nor in the animal creation is there any such thing as a 
natural state of progression ; and that no race or species 

* " I have endeavoured," he says, " to collect all the ancient docu- 
ments respecting the forms of animals, and there are none equal to those 
furnished by the Egyptians, both in regard to their antiquity and 
abundance. They have not only left us representations of animals, but 
even their identical bodies embalmed and preserved in the catacombs. 

" I have examined, with the greatest attention, the engraved figures 
of quadrupeds and birds upon the numerous obelisks brought from 
Egypt to ancient Rome, and all these figures, one with another, have a 
perfect resemblance to their intended objects, such as they are still in 
our days. On examining the copies made by Kirker and Zoega, we find, 
that without preserving every trait of the original in its utmost purity, 
they have yet given us figures which are easily recognized. We readily 
distinguish the ibis, the vulture, the owl, the falcon, the Egyptian goose, 
the lapwing, the land-rail, the asp, the Egyptian hare with its long ears, 
even the hippopotamus ; and among the numerous remains engraved in 
the great work on Egypt, we sometimes observe the rarest animals, the 
algazel for instance, which was known in Europe only a few years ago. 

" My learned colleague, M. Geoffroy Saint Hilaire, convinced of the 
importance of this research, carefully collected, in the tombs and temples 
of Upper and Lower Egypt, as many mummies of animals as he could 
procure. He has brought home the mummies of cats, ibises, birds of 
prey, dogs, monkeys, crocodiles, and the head of a bull ; and after the 
most attentive and detailed examination, net the smallest difference is to 
be perceived between these animals and those of the same species which toe 
Ttow see, any more than between the human mummies and the skeletons 
of men of the present day. Some slight differences are discoverable 
between ibis and ibis, just as we now find differences in the descriptions 
of naturalists ; but I have removed all doubts on that subject, in a 
memoir on the ibis of the ancient Egyptians, in which I have clearly 
shewn that this bird is precisely the same in all respects, at present, that 
it was in the days of the Pharaohs. I am aware that in these I only cite 
the monuments of two or three thousand years back ; but this is the 
most remote antiquity to which we can resort in such a case."* 
* Theory of the Earth, utsvp. p. 123. 



20 ANALOGIES OPPOSED 

of either has ever, as a species, improved itself, or shewn 
any symptom of " possessing within itself the elements 
of improvement." Nature is constant, as Mr Combe is 
fond of observing, and her rules admit of no exceptions, 
and here there is no exception in any class of her pro- 
ductions ; from the cedar in Lebanon to the hyssop that 
springeth out of the wall, or from the leviathan or 
elephant down to the lowest zoophite or coral insect, 
none have ever improved themselves, or given birth to 
improved or superior races. None of these has, as a 
species, been " constituted on the principle of a progres- 
sive system, as the acorn in reference to the oak" 

I assume it, then, as a general law, that throughout 
the whole of organized existence, each species, at its first 
creation, receives a distinct and definite constitution, 
which it transmits, without the capacity of improvement, 
through all succeeding generations. This is not only 
consistent with all the known facts, but is likewise con- 
formable to what might be expected a priori ; for how 
could we suppose that the first of a species, coming 
directly from the hand of the Almighty workman, who 
contrived and formed all its different parts, could be less 
perfect than those which were produced afterwards by 
its means ? The reverse of this appears at first sight 
much more probable ; and accordingly, in certain cases, 
we find it to be true. 

Although each species preserves its original type 
unaltered, and never can by possibility acquire qualities 
of a higher nature, yet individuals of the species, or even 
the whole individuals of a species, from accidental cir- 
cumstances, — from want of proper food, or from being 
placed in situations not in harmony with their nature, — 
may be, and often have been found to degenerate, and 
fall below the original standard of their race. But 
there is throughout all animated nature a certain spring 



TO A PROGRESSIVE SYSTEM. 2l 

and elasticity of constitution ; and as, in the case of 

individuals, provision has been made for the repair of 

any injuries arising from wounds or diseases, by the 

operation of what is called the vis medicatrix natures, so 

in the case of a species degenerating from its pristine 

state, there is still a tendency in the race, when placed 

again in more favourable circumstances, to recover in 

some degree the ground it has lost : and, taking advan- 
ce o J o 

tage of this, man is sometimes able, in the case of those 
animals whom he has subjected to his sway, by supplying 
them with improved food, by judicious crossing, by 
selecting the best individuals to be employed in pro- 
pagation, and other methods, to raise the breed again in 
many respects nearly up to the original type. This is 
the true principle in what is called the improvement of 
breeds; not that man can, by any means whatever, 
mend the works of the Creator, or improve or complete 
what He has left imperfect, for 

God never made his work for man to mend :* 

but, in races which have degenerated, man is able, by 
his intellect, to assist Nature in recovering the ground 
she has lost. In some cases, what is called an improve- 
ment is merely such in reference to the uses of the animal 
to man, and one set of qualities is encouraged at the 
expense of others. Thus, in the race-horse, the only 
quality looked to is swiftness, and the breed is propagated 
with a view to this alone. In cattle which are reared 
for food, the quality of fattening, or of speedily acquiring 
the greatest weight of flesh, is that to which the breeder 
directs his particular attention, disregarding in com- 
parison the qualities of strength and activity,' on which 
depends much of the perfection of the animal. But in 
all cases whatever, we may hold it as a rule, that, taking 
* Dryden. 



22 ANALOGIES OPPOSED TO A PROGRESSIVE SYSTEM. 

any species as a whole, no means exist of improving 
it above a certain point. The original type remains, 
forming a boundary, beyond which it cannot pass. It 
may occasionally fall below it, and by proper means be 
raised up to it again, but it never can be raised higher ; 
as water conducted in pipes may rise up to, but never 
above, the level of the original fountain. 

Applying these facts to the subject in hand, I ask, Is 
it at all conformable to the analogy of nature, or to what 
reason would suggest or anticipate a priori, to suppose 
that man, the greatest, the noblest, the most important 
work of the Creator's power, should form the only 
exception to the above rule, and that he should at his 
first creation have been sent from the hands of his Maker 
in a rude and imperfect state, when all other productions 
of the same Almighty power were perfect from the first ? 
Can it be supposed that less care would be bestowed 
upon the highest, than we see has been exercised upon 
the lowest of his creatures ? Is it at all probable that 
man, the undoubted monarch of the terrestrial creation, 
has been sent into his own dominions naked, weak, and 
miserable, unfurnished with the proper marks and cre- 
dentials of his authority, and left to struggle through all 
sorts of difficulties up to the proper sphere of his glory 
and his power ? 

If we are to argue from analogy, we are compelled to 
conclude, that man, like all the animals, was created with 
all his powers and faculties complete, and that, like them, 
he received at once a definite constitution, possessing all 
the perfection of which his nature is capable. This is 
the general law of creation, and no philosophical reason — 
indeed, no reason at all — can be assigned why there should 
be an exception to the rule in this solitary instance. 



CONDITION OF MAN IN THE EARLIEST AGES. 23 



III. — Evidence derived from history, and from ancient monuments, 
respecting the condition of the human race in the earliest ages. 

In looking into history, and comparing the condition 
of man in past ages with what we find it at present, it is 
by no means my object to maintain that there has been 
no improvement in any part of the race. That such 
improvement has taken place in some nations, and is 
now proceeding, in regard to our moral and intellectual 
condition, are points which need not be disputed ; but 
the true questions to be considered are, what is the 
nature and amount of the improvement observed, and 
to what causes is this improvement to be ascribed ? 

In regard to the first of these points, I may observe, 
that Mr Combe has no historical authority for saying 
that man, when first placed in the world, was in his 
general nature and faculties less perfect than at present. 
The traditions and the poetry of all antiquity are against 
this supposition, and give intimations neither few nor 
obscure of what has been called a golden age, — a period 
when the race was better and happier than in the ages 
which succeeded, and when the earth was without 
violence and without crime. I refer to these traditions 
not as proofs of the fact, but as proofs, at all events, that 
a very general belief of the fact prevailed at a very early 
period. 

The histories of the most ancient empires in the world 
are decidedly against the hypothesis. The facts narrated 
by authentic historians respecting the Assyrian, the 
Median, and the Babylonian empires, completely nega- 
tive the supposition that the races which composed them 
were inferior in powers either of body or mind, to the 
greatest nations which have since existed. Were there 
no other facts to evince this, the descriptions of their 



24 THE CONDITION OF MAN 

works, the immense and splendid cities which they erected, 
their buildings, which for greatness and magnificence 
have never since been equalled, far less surpassed, — the 
fame of which, in distant regions, was such as to procure 
for them the name of wonders of the world, — prove 
incontestably that the people which produced them stood 
high in the scale of physical and intellectual endowment. 
Not to mention Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian 
kings, the size and wealth of which are stated to have 
been prodigious, it may be sufficient merely to allude to 
the more celebrated city of Babylon, which is equally 
famous in sacred and profane history, and which, whether 
it be considered in its extent, its magnificence, its wealth, 
the greatness and power of its kings, its extraordinary 
revolutions, its final downfall, and its present state of 
utter desolation, is equally without a parallel.* 

* Any detailed description of Babylon would be quite superfluous. 
Every one has heard of its prodigious extent, comprehending a regular 
square forty-eight miles in circuit ; its walls said to have been two or 
three hundred feet high, and so broad that several chariots could drive 
along the top of them, abreast ; its hundred gates of solid brass, and the 
towers surmounting the walls by which these were defended : its massive 
bridge of huge stones, fastened together by bolts of iron ; its palaces 
adorned with the most splendid sculptures and paintings ; its hanging 
gardens; its tunnel under the Euphrates,* connecting the palaces on 
opposite sides of the river ; its famous tower, supposed to have been 
the ancient tower of Babel, begun about a century after the Deluge, but 
afterwards enlarged, strengthened, and adorned, so as to be the most 
remarkable building in ancient times, and perhaps the highest in the 
world ; the golden image of Belus, or Baal, by which it was surmounted, 
said to have been forty feet in height, and equal in value to three and a 
half millions sterling. After every allowance for exaggeration in the 
description of these particulars, quite enough will remain to satisfy us 
that the mighty city of Babylon has never been exceeded in greatness 
and magnificence by any that has since been reared by the power or 
industry of man ; and the accounts of its wealth and luxury shew, that 
in these respects also its inhabitants were no way behind the greatest of 

* This may strike us as one of the most remarkable circumstances regarding 
ancient Babylon, knowing, as we do, the difficulties which have attended a similar, 
but far less arduous undertaking, in our own country and time,— difficulties which 
we have not yet succeeded in surmounting. 



IN THE EARLIEST AGES. 25 

Babylon exists no more. Its place is occupied with 
stagnant marshes, and infested with noisome reptiles. 
Of its buildings just enough remain to mark where it 
stood, and to prove the accuracy of ancient historians, by 
shewing that it was built of bricks fastened with reeds 
and bitumen. " And they had brick for stone, and 
slime had they for mortar." 

But there are other ancient cities which have been 
built of more durable materials, the remains of which, 
still in existence, are sufficient to satisfy the most incre- 
dulous of the greatness and power of the people by whom 
they were reared. I allude to the temples and catacombs 

modern nations. Babylon seems to have excelled in rich and ingenious 
manufactures at a very early period in the history of the world ; and its 
" goodly garments" are mentioned 1450 years before Christ. 

The following allusions to the wealth and splendour of Babylon, 
which are partly literal and partly prophetic, may be taken as filling up 
the picture of which the above is the outline. The allusions are so 
circumstantial as to bear the stamp of truth ; and if minutely considered, 
will be found to agree in every particular with what we see realized in 
the greatest emporium of wealth the modern world can boast : — 

" And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn for her, for 
their merchandise no man buyeth any more. 

Merchandise of gold and silver ; 

And of precious stones and pearls ; 

And of tine linen and purple ; 

And of silk and scarlet ; 

And every odorous wood, and every vessel of ivory ; 

And every vessel of most precious wood ; 

And of brass, iron, and marble ; 

And cinnamon and annomum ; 

And perfumes, and myrrh, and incense ; 

And wine and oil ; 

And fine flour and wheat ; 

And cattle and sheep ; 

And horses and chariots ; 

And slaves, — And the souls of men ; 

And the autumnal fruits of thy soul's desire are gone away from thee ; 

And all delicacies and splendours have vanished from thee ; 

And never shalt thou find them any more." — Rev. xviii. 11 — 13. 

See Jehu's Sacred Literature, p. 457. 
C 



26 THE CONDITION OF MAN 

of Egypt; and, above all, to the Pyramids — those stupen- 
dous monuments, which seem to have been executed by 
a race of giants, and left standing as if in scorn of the 
weakness and degeneracy of all succeeding generations.* 

* It is in vain to think of describing the tithe of the wonders of Egypt, 
For it is indeed the land of wonders. Take as an example the ancient 
Thebes, which Homer characterized as the city with a hundred gates. t 
The ruins of this city are of such immense extent, as to convince the 
spectator that fame has not magnified its size ; for the diameter of the 
valley of the Nile not being sufficient to contain it, its monuments rest 
on the opposite chains of mountains, while its tombs occupy the valleys 
to the west, far into the desert. 

The most ancient remains now existing at Thebes, according to Wil- 
kinson, are unquestionably the great temple of Karnak, the largest and 
most splendid ruin, perhaps, of which either ancient or modern times can 
boast, being the work of a number of successive monarchs, each anxious 
to surpass his predecessor, by increasing the dimensions and proportions 
of the part he added. Of the hundred columns of the portico alone, the 
smallest are seven feet and a half in diameter, and the largest twelve. 
The avenue leading to Luxor, a space nearly half a league in extent, 
consists of a constant succession of sphynxes, and other chimerical 
-figures to the right and left, together with fragments of walls, columns, 
and statues. Denon says, that to be enabled to form an idea of so much 
magnificence, one ought to fancy what is before him to be a dream, as 
he who views the objects themselves, rubs his eyes to know whether he 
is awake. 

The village of Luxor is built on the site of the ruins of another temple, 
not so large, but in better preservation. The most colossal parts con- 
sist of fourteen columns nearly eleven feet in diameter, and of two 
statues of granite buried up to the middle of the arms, and having in 
front of them the two largest and best preserved obelisks known. They 
are of rose-coloured granite — are still seventy feet above ground, and, 
including what is covered by the sand, must be at least one hundred in 
the entire height. Their preservation, Denon says, "is perfect; and 
the hieroglyphics with which they are covered being cut deep, and in 
relief at bottom, shew the bold hand of a master, and a beautiful finish. 
The gravers which could touch such hard materials must have been of 
an admirable temper ; and the machines to draw such enormous blocks 
from the quarries, to transport them thither, and to set them upright, 
together with the time required for the labour, surpass all conception." 
The stupendous syenite statue of Ramesis II. in the area of the palace 
temple at Old Quorneh, is perhaps one of the most astonishing remains 

t " Thebe portarum centum nobilis fama."— Pliny. B. 5. c. 9. 



IN THE EARLIEST AGES. 27 

The pyramids* have been so often described, that we 
understand their appearance almost as well as if we had 
seen them. Nothing so simple was ever so sublime, f 

of ancient art in the world. To say that this is the largest statue in 
Egypt, will convey no idea of the gigantic size or enormous weight of a 
mass, which, from an approximate calculation, exceeded, when entire, 
nearly three times the solid contents of the great obelisk of .Karnak, and 
weighed about eight hundred and eighty-seven tons, five and a half 
hundred weight. 

The portico of the temple of Esneh. the ancient Latopolis, is conr- 
sidered one of the most perfect monuments of ancient architecture in 
existence. It is well preserved, and possesses great richness of sculp- 
ture. It is composed of eighteen noble and elegant columns, with broad 
-capitals, and the hieroglyphics with which it is covered within and 
without, have been executed with great care. The capitals, which are 
all different, have a very line effect ; and as a proof that the Egyptians 
did not borrow from other nations, it may be remarked, that all their 
ornaments have been taken from the productions of their own country, 
such as the lotus, the palm tree, or the vine. 

* Wilkinson observes, that in antiquity the pyramids of Egypt sur- 
pass every other monument existing in this or any country ; but they do 
not, of course, from the nature of their construction, at all vie with the 
magnificence of the ruins of Karnak. 

t " With what amazement, 1 ' says Dr Clarke, speaking of the great 
pyramid, "did we survey the vast surface presented to us, when we 
arrived at this stupendous monument, which seemed to reach the clouds. 
Here and there appeared some Arab guides upon the immense masses 
above us, like so many pigmies, waiting to shew the way up to the 
summit." " Already some of the party had begun the ascent, and were 
pausing at the tremendous depth they saw below. The rest of us, more 
accustomed to the business of climbing heights, with many a halt for 
respiration, and many an exclamation of wonder, pursued our way to 
the summit." 

Of the passage to the principal chamber in the interior, Dr Clarke 
observes, " The workmanship, from its perfection, and its immense pro- 
portions, is truly astonishing. All about the spectator, as he proceeds, 
is full of majesty, and mystery, and wonder. Presently we entered that 
'glorious roome,' as it is justly called by Greaves, where, as within 
some consecrated oratory, art may seem to have contended with nature. 
The floor, the sides, the roof of it, are all made of vast and exquisite 
tables of Theban marble. So nicely are these masses fitted to each other 
upon the sides of the chamber, that having no cement between them, it 
is really impossible to force the blade of a knife within the joints," &c. 



28 THE CONDITION OF MAN 

These monuments are vast in the aggregate — vast in 
the individual parts, — and the weight of the materials, 
and the power and science which must have been used 
in their construction, absolutely oppress the imagination. 

Supposing we had no historical records at all respect- 
ing the greatness of the ancient monarchies, and that we 
were merely left to infer what we could from the Egyp- 
tian remains alone, we certainly could draw no other 
conclusion, than that these ancient buildings were the 
work of a great and powerful people, who had not only 
made the highest attainments in the arts, and in many 
important branches of science, but had possessed a degree 
of talent, of taste, and of genius, certainly not surpassed 
since in any age or country. 

It may be alleged, that these monuments only prove 
the intellectual greatness of the people by whom they 
w r ere erected, but shew nothing respecting their moral 
qualities. If, however, intellectual eminence be conceded 
to them, we are not lightly to presume moral inferiority. 
And here we are not altogether without some light to 
shew, that in this respect also the most ancient nations 
were at least equal to all that succeeded them, down to 
the promulgation of Christianity, The traditions or 
histories of all nations bear witness to the comparatively 
pure morals and simple habits of their ancestors at the 
rise of each state, and the universal complaint has been, 
that as wealth and greatness have increased, virtue has 
disappeared. 

" Righteousness," we are told, " exalte th a nation," 
and the truth of the maxim has been exemplified both 
in ancient and modern times. The Persians, under 
Cyrus the Great, appear to have been a simple and 
virtuous people. The education of their youth is said 
to have consisted chiefly in their being taught to " speak 
truth, and to ride on horseback ;" and if we understand 



IN THE EARLIEST AGES. 29 

this in its largest acceptation, it must have included all 
that is necessary to promote the manly virtues of courage 
and sincerity, the most important part of what is now 
considered the education of a gentleman. The Greeks, 
in the earlier part of their history, were a hardy and 
vigorous race, patient of fatigue, and capable of sustain- 
ing the greatest hardships. Unenervated by sloth, 
uncorrupted by luxury, their very sports and games 
consisted in exhibitions of personal strength, emulation, 
energy, and manly daring ; while, to excel in these, they 
were led to cultivate the virtues of temperance and self- 
denial to a degree with which modern nations are little 
conversant. The result of this sort of training appeared 
in the noble stand which these petty states were able to 
make against the whole forces of Asia led by Darius and 
• Xerxes; and afterwards, when, by the prudence of 
Philip, and the fortune of Alexander, they were united 
under one head, in the astonishing rapidity with which, 
under the latter, they overran and conquered the great 
kingdoms of Persia and Egypt, and established an em- 
pire, which, though soon rent into four rival monarchies,, 
endured afterwards with little alteration upwards of four 
centuries. 

The beginnings of the Roman state are lost in fable. 
but at the time it first began to rise to eminence, namely 
during the second Punic war, we find among them much 
that, humanly speaking, is virtuous and praiseworthy. 
The self-devotion of Regulus — the continence of Scipio 
— the virtue of Cincinnatus — are only specimens of that 
firmness, temperance, and patriotic feeling, which in 
those days were far from being rare qualities. The 
indomitable spirit shewn by the senate after 'the repeated 
victories of Hannibal — their noble vote of thanks to their 
defeated general for "not despairing of the fortunes of 
the Republic," — evince a combination of great and 

c2 



30 THE CONDITION OF MAN 

generous qualities of which there are few examples, and 
afford unequivocal proofs of the character of a people fit 
to obtain the empire of the world. 

This being the case in the beginnings of these great 
states, it may naturally be asked, did they improve in 
morality as they increased in greatness? Does the 
principle of progression appear in this, or do we find 
society, in these large masses, to contain within itself 
the elements of improvement, which time has evolved 
and brought to maturity ? Is it not notorious, that the 
very reverse is the case, — that virtue and morality are 
most conspicuous in the earlier history of states, and 
that from thence the tendency has universally been, 
downwards to vice and corruption ? 

In support of these conclusions, drawn from history, 
and the remains of ancient monuments, we are enabled, 
in the case of the Egyptians, to produce a species of 
evidence to which Mr Combe, at least, can offer no- 
objection. 

In the remarks on the cerebral development of. 
nations, contained in Mr Combe's System of Phreno- 
logy,* we find the following passage : — " The ancient 
Egyptians appear, from the stupendous monuments of. 
art and science left behind them, to have been a highly 
intelligent and civilized people ; and it is a striking fact, 
that the skulls of ancient mummies are found almost 
invariably to belong to the same class as those of modern 
Europeans. In the (Phrenological) Society's collection 
there are casts of the skulls of five mummies ; and I have 
seen or obtained accurate descriptions of the skulls of 
half-a-dozen more; and full size, large development 
before the ear, and broad coronal surface, characterize 
them all." It is necessary to mention, that, according 

* Second Edition, p. .475., 



IN THE EARLIEST AGES. 31 

to the doctrines laid down by all phrenological writers, 
a considerable size of brain is found to be indicative of 
a powerful manifestation of the faculties ; and that a large 
development before the ear, and a large coronal surface, 
are the marks of a high endowment of intellectual and 
moral qualities.* 

* In farther confirmation of what is stated in the text, I may refer to 
the account of two skulls in the possession of the Phrenological Society, 
taken from an ancient temple in Egypt, which there are strong pre- 
sumptive proofs for supposing to have been those of Ramesis II. and 
his queen. These skulls were presented to the Society by Captain 
Felix, R.N. The circumstances in which they were found are thus 
related : — "A temple was discovered in December, 1828, which had 
been erected by Ramses or Ramesis II. Under one of the chambers 
was a small vault, containing two mummies, a man and a woman, richly 
and completely gilt. The mummy case crumbled to pieces on being 
touched. Much gold was found on the mummies, besides three 
hundred bronze gods of different sizes, &c. In the chamber where 
the mummies were, the king was dedicator, and no other name appeared. 
It is always the person to whom the tomb belongs who dedicates it." 
Some other conjectures are added, but the whole circumstances seemed 
to indicate it as probable, that these were really the skulls of Ramesis II. 
otherwise named Sesostris, (who flourished about the time of the Trojan 
war, nearly twelve hundred years before Christ,) and one of his wives. 

In an account of these skulls given in the Phrenological Journal, t 
it is stated, that " the chief value of them is not so much their pro- 
digious antiquity, nor even their increased antiquarian value, arising 
from the singular glimmer of light which chance has thrown upon their 
identity, (in which particular, we take it, they are unique among cabinet 
mummies,) but the confirmation they afford of the phrenological truth, that 
a people remarkable for intelligence, taste, enterprise, and all the elements 
of civilization, — and such a people were the Egyptians, — must have 
exhibited a brain well endowed with the organization through which 
such qualities are invariably manifested." The article then proceeds to 
shew that this was actually the case. It had been mentioned in a 
previous number, that " the mummies confirm our uniform experience, 
that the Egyptian head belonged to the Caucasian variety of Blumen- 
bach, to which the European also belongs ;" and it is here added, that 
the skulls are of large size, indicating, according to the well known 
phrenological rule, great power and energy of character. The develop- 
ment, which is given at length, is stated to indicate a fair balance of 

fVoL vi. p. 523.; 



32 THE CONDITION OF MAN 

From the above I think it is evident that Mr Combe 
is not borne out in assuming that " the civil history of 
man proclaims the march, though often vacillating and 
slow, of moral and intellectual improvement." In regard 
to intellectual attainment, at least, we have seen it 
proved, that the most ancient nations equalled, or rather 
surpassed, all that have come after them. The proofs 
from history, from existing monuments, from phreno- 
logical observation on undoubted cranial remains, all 
unite in leading to this conclusion. We have farther 
seen, that in every great people, the earlier periods of 
their history have been most remarkable for a pure state 
of morals, and that no great improvement in this respect 
has taken place since the earliest ages. If, then, we find 
the Egyptians and Babylonians, three thousand years 
ago, equal, in intellectual and moral qualities, to the 
principal nations of the world at the present day, what 
reason have we to suppose that their ancestors, the 
original stock from which they were derived, had ever 
been materially below the same standard ? Again, if 
it be true that society is constituted on the principle 
of gradual progression, " containing within itself the 

the animal, intellectual, and moral qualities. In the male head, com- 
parison and causality, (the principal reasoning powers,) also firmness, 
veneration, and hope, (three of the principal moral powers,) together 
with cautiousness, and love of approbation, are all stated to be large ; 
self-esteem, benevolence, and ideality, also important powers, rather 
large ; conscientiousness, or the sense of justice, wonder, gaiety, or wit, 
and imitation, full. This, in any head, would be considered a good 
development ; and if, as is supposed, it belonged to a powerful king, its 
manifestations would doubtless be productive of great effects. The 
female head is not less highly endowed, with some striking differences, 
characteristic of the sex of the party. Both of the heads, in develop- 
ment as well as in size, are above the average even of the European head 
at this day ; and if they afford any thing like fair specimens of the race 
to which they belonged, they prove, if there be truth in phrenology, 
that that race must have held a very high rank in the scale of intelli- 
gence and civilization among the nations of the world. 



IN THE EARLIEST AGES. 33 

elements of improvement, which time is continually 
evolving and bringing to maturity," then Babylonia 
and Egypt should have been now the greatest, the 
most powerful, the most intellectual, and the most moral 
nations on the face of the earth. Enjoying, as they did, 
the finest climate, the richest soil, and the most splendid 
advantages of situation, with immense population, and 
the possession of what it is now the fashion to call 
" useful knowledge" (a knowledge of the arts and 
sciences) in a high degree of perfection, how has it 
happened that they did not improve these advantages 
farther ? how has it happened that they have so entirely 
fallen from their ancient greatness ? There must be 
some reason for this, that is not dreamt of in Mr 
Combe's philosophy. 

It will be observed, that in comparing the Egyptians 
and Babylonians with nations now existing, it is not fair 
to compare them with ourselves, or with any other nation 
enjoying the superior lights derived from revealed reli- 
gion. They ought to be compared with the Chinese, the 
Japanese, or other nations which are not favoured with 
a knowledge of revealed truth ; for in this way only can 
it be seen how far the moral and intellectual nature of 
man may be brought to perfection by the sole aid of 
those principles of improvement inherent luithin itself. 
That a great and rapid improvement has now been 
going on for centuries, and is still proceeding, in those 
countries which have been brought under the influence 
of Christianity, is admitted on all sides ; but that proves 
nothing in favour of Mr Combe's argument, unless it 
can be shewn that Christianity has nothing to do with 
this improvement. 



34 GENERAL PROGRESS OF CIVILIZATION. 



IV. — Progress of Civilization over the, world. 

But let us proceed with our account of the facts. 
Babylonia is universally understood to have been the 
first peopled country in the world. From it, as from a 
centre, the arts and sciences, and civilization, were 
disseminated among the neighbouring countries, to the 
east and to the west. The rise of the kingdoms of 
Persia and India on the one side, and of Egypt and 
Phoenicia on the other, are instances of this. Greece 
was civilized by communication with the east. Cadmus 
introduced letters from Phoenicia. Corn, and a know- 
ledge of agriculture, were brought from Egypt. The 
curious and ardent spirits of Greece, anxious to see with 
their own eyes the wonders they had heard of, travelled 
into these countries, and brought with them a know- 
ledge of their arts, their sciences, their traditions, their 
philosophy, and their religion. 

From Greece, the arts, letters, and philosophy, passed 
to Rome. The conquerors were civilized by the con- 
quered. The Romans having subdued the nations of 
western Europe, then possessed by a number of bar- 
barian hordes, carried their arts and literature along 
with them ; and in return for the subjection to which 
they reduced them, imbued them with a knowledge and 
a taste for the conveniences of civilized life. 

This has been the progress of arts and civilization 
over the whole world. There has never been an instance 
known of a nation, which had once degenerated into 
barbarism, (for I conceive in all cases barbarism to be 
the result of degeneracy,) that ever raised itself to 
civilization without the aid of foreign influences. As 
this is a negative proposition, Mr Combe is aware that 
it does not require or admit of proof. If he is able to 



ITS PROGRESS IN BRITAIN. 35 

adduce any instance where a barbarous and savage race 
have risen, by their own efforts, to moral or intellectual 
excellence, it will be time enough to consider it. We 
know, that during the period that has elapsed since the 
discovery of America, not the least improvement has 
taken place in any of the barbarous tribes scattered over 
that great continent. The same may be said of the 
numerous nations inhabiting the interior of Africa. But 
the rule is* universal, and a contrary instance may be 
searched for in vain. 

V. — Progress of Civilization in Britain, and the causes which 
have given rise to the improvement of its inhabitants. 

Mr Combe takes the case of the inhabitants of 
Britain, and mentions that, at the time of the Roman 
invasion, they lived as savages, and appeared with 
painted skins ; and he seems to conclude, that because 
they were savages, and we are now civilized, nothing 
more is necessary to be adduced, in order to establish 
his principle of gradual improvement. But if we look 
attentively into history, we shall find that the civiliza- 
tion of the inhabitants of Britain has not proceeded 
spontaneously from any principles of improvement in- 
herent in themselves, but has arisen entirely from the 
effects of successive foreign conquests, and other influences 
coming from without, the principal and most efficacious 
of which is undoubtedly Christianity. Judging from the 
case of other savages, none of whom are ever known to 
shew the least tendency of themselves towards improve- 
ment, the Britons, if left entirely to their own devices, 
would have been painted savages still. 

The Romans first conquered, and then colonized the 
country, and possessed it for a period of four hundred 
years. During that time they mixed with the inhabi- 
tants, and taught them the arts of peace. Agriculture 



36 CAUSES OF THE PROGRESS 

was introduced and carried to high perfection, and 
Britain became a granary for the supply of the Roman 
armies with corn. 

Next came the invasion of the Saxons, who, following 
the dictates of their native courage, seized upon the 
rich cultivated plains of England as their lawful prey. 
They did not conquer merely, they colonized also ; and 
one horde after another of their hardy race came over 
and possessed the country. They did not drive out, but 
mixed with the conquered Britons. Both races were 
improved by their intermarriages, and the best qualities 
of each were transmitted to their descendants. 

But the Saxons were not allowed to possess their 
conquests in peace. Another set of adventurers came to 
dispute with them the possession of such a prize. The 
Saxons having, from long disuse, lost some of their 
aptitude for war, were obliged to yield for a time to the 
fierce attack of a race of pirates, who, under the name 
of sea kings, brought their legions from the shores of 
Scandinavia. The Danes, though rude and fierce, 
were not destitute of many high qualities, being true 
descendants of the Caucasian race ; and partly by their 
mixture with the former inhabitants of the soil, and 
partly by the excitement caused by their mutual 
struggles, they added materially to the elements of 
improvement, and the means already at work, by which 
the English character was finally raised to the height 
it has since attained. 

Last, came the invasion of the Normans, originally 
a Scandinavian colony, who, to all the native energy of 
the race from which they sprung, added some of those 
refinements inseparable from a residence in a rich and 
productive country. The superiority of the Norman 
character over that of the mixed race they came among, 
appears in nothing more strongly than in the short 






OF CIVILIZATION IN BRITAIN. 37 

period of time in which a mere handful, comparatively 
speaking, of the former, overran and conquered the 
whole country, and the entire subjugation to which 
they finally reduced its inhabitants. 

Since that time Britain has been free from foreign 
conquest, but other elements have been incessantly at 
work, calling into activity the mental energies of its 
inhabitants, and combining, in every sort of way, to 
raise, improve, and civilize the national character. 

Part of this may be traced to the incessant endeavours 
of the people, consisting of the mixed races of Britons, 
Danes, and Saxons, to throw off the iron yoke imposed 
on them by their Norman conquerors, and to regain 
that degree of freedom which they had formerly enjoyed 
under their Saxon kings ; struggles which finally issued 
in the granting of Magna Charta, and the establishment 
of those privileges of the commons, which have formed 
the foundation of English liberty. 

In the mean time other principles were at work. 
Christianity, though rudely taught, and imperfectly 
understood, had, in the midst of all these conquests 
and revolutions, been silently introduced, and had 
quietly gained a hold on the feelings and affections of 
the people. Rude and imperfect as the teaching of 
Christianity then was, it still contained much that was 
valuable, and, by its means, a more rational faith and a 
purer morality became current than that which ever 
prevailed in heathen times. Its ministers possessed all 
the learning of the age, and shewed in their lives 
examples of simplicity and charity. This is an element 
of improvement of which no heathen nation could ever 
boast, and, in this respect, our ancestors were more 
favoured than the greatest empires of antiquity. 

Other foreign influences were not wanting to keep 
up the activity of the faculties, and to forward the 

D 



38 CAUSES OF THE PROGRESS 

improvement of the race. The gradual encroachment of 
the Mahometan powers, at last raised a not unreasonable 
alarm that Christendom might be overwhelmed by the 
inroads of infidels, and that the Cross might ultimately 
fall before the armies of the Crescent. The whole 
Christian world, as if seized by a sudden mania, arose 
as one man, and Europe poured her countless legions 
into Asia, for the professed purpose of rescuing from the 
hands of infidels the possession of the Holy Sepulchre, 
and of those countries trodden , by the footsteps of the 
Saviour of the world. The avowed purpose was futile, 
and the success equivocal, and gained by a prodigious 
sacrifice of blood and treasure ; but the demonstration 
answered an end of far more importance, not con- 
templated by the immediate actors, though, probably, 
in part, foreseen by the instigators of the enterprise. 
The impression made on the followers of Ali was 
tremendous, and proved to them the utter hopelessness 
of any attempt to attack the Christian powers within 
their own territories. 

The effect of the Crusades upon the Christians them- 
selves was favourable to national improvement. The 
universal enthusiasm which they excited, raised into 
activity many of the nobler attributes of mind, which 
could not have been called into action during whole 
ages of less stirring excitement. The reports of those 
who returned of the exploits of themselves and their 
companions, their accounts of the countries they had 
visited, the cities and manners they had beheld, all 
tended to enlarge the ideas and increase the knowledge 
even of those who had remained at home, and furnished 
them with subjects of contemplation, and discoveries 
more interesting than the low and selfish objects of 
ordinary life. The result of the whole was, a decided 
improvement and elevation of the standard of national 



OF CIVILIZATION IN BRITAIN. 39 

manners and national morality, the introduction of a 
sense of honour, and of a generous attention to the 
comforts, and a deference to the feelings of the weaker 
sex, which even yet exercise an influence over most of 
the nations of Europe. 

The effect of these changes on national character 
appeared in nothing more remarkably than in the altera- 
tion which is hereafter visible even in the usages of war. 
In the wars of conquest carried on by the. Edwards 
and the Henrys in the kingdom of France, amidst all 
the horrors of such a state of things, there appear here 
and there gleams of generosity and clemency, tending 
to soften the distress of the vanquished, and to adorn the 
laurels of the conquerors with a grace and a humanity 
unknown in former ages. 

But other prospects were soon to open, which directed 
the attention of Europe to subjects of excitement of a 
different kind. A new world rose suddenly to view, 
and the same period saw almost at once a path of access 
opened in the east and in the west, to regions of which 
all those objects hitherto considered the rarest and most 
precious, and forming the chief elements of wealth and 
splendour, were the native productions. New desires 
and new objects of ambition arose, and from this period 
we may date the new turn given to the spirit of enter- 
prise, and the extraordinary energy in the pursuit of 
wealth, which has since characterized the middle classes 
in the nations of Europe. From that time their atten- 
tion ceased to be directed to schemes of mutual conquest, 
and was turned rather to those vast regions which seemed 
to offer a boundless field for the gratifications of acquisi- 
tiveness. To this cause, and the excitement of ihe 
faculties thence arising, are owing much of the progress 
we have since made in knowledge, in arts and manufac- 
tures, and in science. The necessities of navigation have 



40 CAUSES OF THE PROGRESS 

led us to cultivate astronomy and mathematical science,* 
and the result of our commercial voyages has been to 
make us acquainted with the different regions of the 
globe, their climates and productions, to an extent of 
which former ages had no conception. We have now 
seen fulfilled to the letter, the saying of the ancient 
prophet, " Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge 
shall be increased." 

To all these causes of improvement of our country- 
men in mind and knowledge, may be added that which 
has diffused and disseminated a spirit through the mass 
of society different from any that prevailed in ancient 
times, which has already done much, and promises to 
effect still more, in promoting every moral and intellec- 
tual excellence. The Reformation opened a new light 
to the faculties of man on the subject of religion, and, 
instead of confining them to the exercise of a blind 
faith, and an implicit reliance on a bigoted and interested 
priesthood, taught them to exercise their own intellects 
in interpreting the word of God, as contained in the 
Holy Scriptures, and in applying the doctrines therein 
contained as a rule of faith and conduct. The Refor- 
mation was certainly one of the mightiest revolutions, 
touching matters of the most important kind, that ever 
occurred in the history of the human race. And its 
effect was rendered many times more powerful — and, 
indeed, increased to an extent that can hardly be appre- 
ciated — by the discovery which took place about the 
same time of the art of printing. The breaking up of 
the monasteries, which immediately, or as a necessary 
consequence, followed the Reformation, aided by this 
art, laid open to the world, almost at the same period, 

* Greenwich Ohservatory was established by Charles II. for the 
express purpose of obtaining accurate observations of the places of the 
stars for the use of the navy. 



OF CIVILIZATION IN BRITAIN. 41 

the treasures of Greek and Roman literature. The 
impulse given to the European mind by the united 
effect of these circumstances was prodigious. The 
faculties of men seemed to awake as from a slumber 
of fifteen centuries, and the nations of Europe entered 
upon a new career of improvement, the results of which 
were soon visible in inventions in the arts, discoveries in 
science, and the most splendid displays of literary genius. 
This progress in art and science has steadily proceeded 
throughout all the varied fortunes of states, amidst the 
rise and fall of dynasties, and the revolutions of king- 
doms; and, instead of being hitherto checked, seems 
to be now going on in an accelerated rate, every new 
acquisition only increasing the desire, and adding to the 
facilities of farther conquests. 

From the above slight sketch, it will be abundantly 
evident th?t all these advances in the moral and intellec- 
tual condition of our countrymen, have not proceeded, 
as Mr Combe supposes, from any "principle of improve- 
ment inherent in the race, which time alone evolved 
and brought to maturity," but that they have been 
begun, continued, and carried on from one step in their 
progress to another, by a successive application of foreign 
influences, and of stimuli, many of them of the most violent 
kind, arising in one way or another from external causes. 
Some nations, which at the time of the Roman invasion 
of Britain were in a state much resembling our painted 
ancestors, and which from their situation have been 
removed from foreign communication, remain in the 
same state to this day. Others, which at that time had 
attained a certain state of civilization, such as China 
and India, have stood still, or become retrograde, all the 
time that we have been making the advances that have 
been described. Now, as Mr Combe says, natui'e is 
constant ; and if human nature, as he supposes, was 

d 2 



42 CAUSES OF THE PROGRESS 

originally constituted on the principle of gradual im- 
provement, that improvement would, in the course of so 
many ages, have been visible in every nation, and every 
country in the world. How, then, upon his principle, 
has improvement taken place only in one quarter of the 
globe, and its colonies, while all the rest remains at this 
day immersed in the grossest darkness ? 

Mr Combe, in several parts of his work, laments the 
prevalence of war and conquest, and regards the past 
history of the nations of Europe, and of our own in 
particular, as one series of folly and blundering, con- 
sidering, as he seems to do, that matters would have 
been greatly improved, had every nation continued to 
live quietly within its own territories. If, however, we 
look to the condition of those nations who have remained 
undisturbed by extensive wars and foreign conquest, we 
must be convinced that these views are more plausible 
than sound ; and looking to the effect of these circum- 
stances among ourselves, it appears on the whole to be 
a more reasonable conclusion, that all the wars — all the 
invasions — all the conquests to which this island has been 
subjected — all the excitements of foreign expeditions, 
either for the sake of gain, or of military glory — all the 
revolutions that have happened to us, either by changes 
of dynasty, or the contending of adverse factions — all the 
discussions between rival sects in religion, in philosophy, 
and in political science — all the alternations between 
seasons of national prosperity and adversity — all the 
times of our affliction, and all the times of our wealth, — 
have just been so many stimuli applied to the national 
mind, and calculated, by the sure operation of cause 
and effect, to draw forth the energies, and develop the 
resources of the national character. These circum- 
stances, which Mr Combe laments, and considers so 
many calamities, seem, on the contrary, to have been 
undoubtedly among the causes of our improvement. 



OF CIVILIZATION IN BRITAIN. 43 

It may, perhaps, be objected, that all the circum- 
stances above mentioned, which have contributed to the 
civilization of Britain, with the sole exception of Chris- 
tianity, are mere natural causes, and that their effect 
may be admitted in perfect consistency with Mr Combe's 
theory. To a certain extent this may be the case ; and 
it will be observed, I have not stated them merely as 
militating against Mr Combe's theory, but in order to 
present to the reader a full and complete statement of 
all the causes which have led to our improvement, 
which, it must be acknowledged, Mr Combe has not 
done. When Mr Combe shall so far modify his views, 
as to admit the beneficial effects of war and conquest, 
colonization and commerce, as steps in the progressive 
march of human improvement, he will, no doubt, bring 
his system nearer the truth. But still we come at last 
to that greatest and most important element, which Mr 
Combe's system carefully excludes, but which a mature 
consideration may satisfy us is of more consequence than 
all the rest put together. All the natural causes of im- 
provement have been in operation, with more or less 
effect, from the beginning of the world, in every country 
under heaven ; and what is the result ? Is it not the 
case, that, with the exception of those countries in which 
Christianity prevails, all the rest of the world is sunk in 
greater or less degrees of ignorance, barbarism, and 
brutality ? Is it not the case, that those countries which 
have embraced Christianity, are not merely immeasurably 
superior to the rest, but that they are the only ones where 
any progress, or any moral or intellectual improvement 
is at present taking place ? When Mr Combe is able 
either to disprove these facts, or to explain them upon 
his principles, I shall be willing to give his statements 
and arguments all due weight ; but in the mean time, 
and until he favours us with this demonstration, I must 



44 CONCLUSION OF 

be contented to believe, that Christianity is the great 
and the principal cause of that improvement and tltat 
civilization with which it is thus found to Tbe universally 
conjoined. 

I have now examined the theory of Mr Combe in 
both its parts, and I conceive that I have demonstrated, 
that in both of them he is wrong. I have shewn, from 
his own statement of the facts relative to the natural 
world, that it did not originally " contain within itself 
the elements of improvement, which time evolved. and 
brought to maturity," but that it was formed by succes- 
sive steps, and that it required several successive inter- 
positions of creative power to render it a fit habitation 
for the human race; and, therefore, analogy leads us to 
expect that similar interpositions may be required in the 
moral world also, in order to lead men to the fulfilment 
of their ultimate destiny. 

The researches of geologists prove that no race of 
animals were ever derived from other species, or came 
to perfection by slow and gradual progression, but that 
every race was at once produced full and perfect ; and 
here, also, analogy would teach us that the same, would 
be the case with man. 

The researches of naturalists prove, that so far back 
as observation is capable of being extended, no alteration 
whatever has taken place in the condition of any of the 
animal tribes, and that for three thousand years, or 
upwards, there is not the slightest appearance of any 
improvement or progression among them : here, again, 
analogy would lead us to conclude that the same has 
been the case with man. 

Again, in resorting to the history of the human race, 
as far as authentic history reaches, we see no proofs of 
this alleged principle of progression, or that the race 



THE ARGUMENT. 45 

" contained the elements of improvement within itself." 
On the contrary, we find that in the remotest ages man 
had executed works greater and more astonishing than 
any which have been produced since ; from which we 
conclude, that the people who executed them must have 
possessed a knowledge, an energy, a perseverance, and 
capacities of various kinds, superior to those of any 
modern nation ; that the very people who produced these 
works, instead of being able to carry on the career of 
improvement, were not able to sustain it, but sunk by a 
gradual progress downwards to utter decay ; that the 
same has been the case with every one of the great 
empires that succeeded them, all of which, after a short- 
lived prosperity, fell successively into vice, corruption, 
and ruin : so that, to this extent, the progress of the 
human race has not been upwards but downwards, and 
instead of advancing has been retrograde. 

We have seen, farther, that all the arts and sciences, 
and all improvement in civilization, have originally 
emanated from these primitive nations, and have since 
been communicated from one state to another, in one 
unbroken series, down to our remote and distant land 
and generation. 

We have seen, that whenever a people became sunk 
in ignorance and barbarism, they have never again raised 
themselves by their own exertions to a state of civiliza- 
tion ; and that the inhabitants of this island have only 
been brought into their present condition by a successive 
mixture with other races, and a series of the most extra- 
ordinary stimuli coming to us from without. 

These are the undoubted facts, and I submit that 
they completely disprove the notion that the human 
race is so constituted as to contain within itself the 
elements of improvement, which time alone will evolve 
and bring to maturity. 



46 THE DOCTRINE OF DIVINES 



CHAPTER IL 



MR COMBES OPPOSITION TO THE DOCTRINE OF DIVINES, RESPECTING THE 
ORIGINAL PERFECTION, AND ..SUBSEQUENT DEGENERACY OF THE HUMAN 
RACE. 



I now turn to the other supposition, which Mr 
Combe speaks of as an hypothesis hardly worth notice 
in this enlightened age, namely, " that the world was 
perfect at first, but fell into derangement, continues in 
disorder, and does not contain within itself the elements 
of its own rectification. " 

Mr Combe states this view as an hypothesis ; it is 
stated in the book of Genesis as a fact. 

This book is not a mere historical record, giving an 
account of events on the credit of human testimony, but 
is offered to us as written under the immediate inspira- 
tion of God, and the proofs of its being so are numerous 
and conclusive. 

As nothing can proceed from the Divine Being but 
what is true, we can have no hesitation in admitting, 
that if any doctrine or opinion which may be supposed to 
be contained in the Sacred Writings, or which may have 
been deduced from any statement therein contained, is 
found to be contrary to undoubted facts, or can be proved 
on plain and undeniable deductions of reason to be false, 
we must adopt the conclusion, that the doctrine or opinion 
in question is not really contained in the Scriptures, and 
that Our impression that it did contain such a statement 



COMPARED WITH MR COMBE'S THEORY. 47 

has arisen from mistake. It is undoubted that all truths 
must be in harmony with each other, and that philoso- 
phical truth can never be at variance with religious truth. 
But then the question occurs which was asked by Pilate, 
" What is truth ?" and as the reasonings of philosophers 
are not in all cases infallible, it is incumbent upon them, 
no less than upon divines, in cases where there is an 
apparent discrepancy, to be most careful in revising 
their arguments, and the facts upon which these are 
founded, and to adopt nothing until it is proved beyond 
the possibility of mistake. 

In reference to the present subject, there can be no 
doubt that this ancient document does expressly state, in 
terms which seem to admit of no dubiety, that the world 
we now occupy, and all that it contains, and particularly 
man, its last and most exalted inhabitant, were created 
at first in a state of high perfection. The creation of 
man is introduced with peculiar emphasis and solemnity. 
" And God said, Let us make man after our own image, 
and in our own likeness ; and let him have dominion 
over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and 
over the cattle, and over every creeping thing that 
creepeth upon the earth." 

The two synonymous expressions, " after our own 
image" and " in our own likeness" seem to be used on 
purpose to prevent the possibility of mistake in a point 
of such importance. This is frequently the case 
throughout the sacred writings, where the meaning to 
be expressed is not trusted to a single word or phrase, 
which might possibly be corrupted or misunderstood; but 
another is frequently added, to confirm and illustrate it. 
Both the terms are again repeated, and the form of 
expression varied, as if to enforce, with peculiar solem- 
nity, the important truth intended to be conveyed. 
" So God created man in his own image; in the 



48 THE DOCTRINE OF DIVINES 

image of God created he him ; male and female created 
he them." 

And again, in the fifth chapter. " In the day that 
God created man, in the likeness of God made he him ; 
male and female created he them ; and he blessed 
them," &c. 

It had been specially declared, in regard to every 
previous act of creation, and with regard to every crea- 
ture that was made, animate and*inanimate, that " God 
saw that it was good ;" but after the creation of man, the 
last and highest production of his power, as if he had 
now put the crowning work on his vast undertaking, in 
a manner that imparted a superior lustre to the whole, 
at is emphatically said, " And God saw every thing that 
he had made, and behold it was very good." 

Such are the simple, but solemn and most expressive 
terms in which the creation of man is related in Genesis, 
and it would seem impossible for language to convey 
more clearly and unequivocally information of the fact, 
that man was originally created with all his powers and 
capacities, in a state of the very highest perfection. 

But this, we have seen, does not satisfy Mr Combe. 
He has a particular dislike to the doctrine of the Fall, 
and the consequent corruption and depravity of human 
nature ; and to get rid of this, to him, obnoxious doctrine, 
he directs all his ingenuity. With this view, he has 
adopted a theory, according to which man (contrary to 
the analogy of every other being in the world) not only 
now is, but has been from the beginning, in a state of 
slow and gradual improvement, " being constituted on 
the principle of a progressive system, as the acorn in 
reference to the oak." By this theory, man must have 
at first started from zero, with all his faculties and 
powers in the very lowest state of development. 

This is a necessary consequence from his theory ; but 



COMPARED WITH MR COMBE'S THEORY. 49 

although he rather avoids making the revolting statement 
in express terms, yet he knows it is a consequence from 
which he cannot escape, and he almost intimates as much 
in one or two passages. He says, " When man appeared, 
he received from his Creator an organized structure and 
animal instincts, &c. But to the animal nature of man 
have been added, by a bountiful Creator, moral senti- 
ments and reflecting faculties," &c. After adverting to 
the higher nature of these, he adds, " But this peculiarity 
attends them, that while his animal faculties act power- 
fully of themselves, his rational faculties require to be 
cultivated, exercised, and instructed, before they will 
yield their full harvest of enjoyment."* According to 
this, then, when man was first created, he could only 
manifest the instincts of the animal part of his nature, as 
these alone were formed to act spontaneously ; his higher 
powers could not then be manifested, as they could not 
act until they were cultivated, exercised, and instructed. 

He then goes on to state, that " man thus apparently 
took his station among, yet at the head of the beings that 
inhabited the earth at his creation." Is this meant to 
intimate, that, at his first introduction into the world, 
man was only a superior kind of an oran-outang, or like 
the Yahoo described by Gulliver, in the voyage to 
Houyhnhnms, — having, to be sure, the seeds and 
rudiments of certain moral and intellectual qualities, 
which time was to evolve and bring to maturity ; but 
being, in the mean time, little superior to the other 
animals among whom he is said to have taken his place ? 
— Quer. Does Mr Combe adopt the opinion of Lord 

* This assumption is entirely gratuitous, and unsupported by faets. 
Where the rational faculties are naturally and originally strong, they act 
no less spontaneously and powerfully of themselves than those which 
Mr Combe calls the animal faculties, and require as little assistance from 
■education. There is no distinction, in this respect, between the tvw? 
sets of faculties. 



50 THE DOCTRINE OF DIVINES 

Monboddo, that men were originally furnished with 
tails ? 

According to Mr Combe's view, even the lowest 
savage existing on the shores of New Holland, must be 
a highly improved being, greatly superior in his moral 
and intellectual capacities to the original inhabitants of 
the globe. The principle of progression, if it be good 
for any thing, must be good to this extent. If we adopt 
it at all, it is impossible to escape from the conclusion, 
that man. must have started with his faculties at the 
lowest possible point. We must carry our calculations 
backwards, not merely for a few hundred years, but to 
the beginning of time; and if' we do so, there is no 
possibility of stopping short of this point. Nature is 
constant, and if the inhabitant of ancient or modern 
Europe, of Greece, Italy, or Britain, has been con- 
stituted as part of a progressive system, so must also 
the native of New Holland, of Nootka Sound, the 
Carrib, or the Hottentot. 

In this way, to be sure, Mr Combe gets rid of the 
doctrine of the Fall : for if man commenced his career 
from the lowest level, he could not by possibility fall 
lower. We have, therefore, only to consider whether 
the theory is true : we have to choose between the direct 
positive statement of Moses, and this hypothesis, for it is 
no more, of Mr Combe. 

Now, setting aside for the present altogether the 
divine authority of Scripture, and putting both views 
on the equal footing of a statement that is to be sup- 
ported by proof, which of the views, I would ask, is 
most in accordance with the evidence before us, — the 
simple statement of the Bible, that man was at first 
created with all his powers and faculties, social, moral, 
and intellectual, in their highest and most perfect state, 
(for what less can we understand by the expression, that 



COMPARED WITH MR COMBE'S THEORY. 51 

he was created in the image and in the likeness of that 
great Being who is all perfection ?) or the supposition 
that he was, at the first, the same weak, wavering, and 
imperfect being that he is now ; or rather, much more 
weak, and much more imperfect, but containing within 
himself the elements of improvement, which it was left 
to time to evolve and bring to maturity ? Which of 
these is most in accordance with the analogy of nature, 
the facts of authentic history, and all the evidence we 
have been able to collect of the past and present con- 
dition of the human race ? Most assuredly the former. 
All the productions, either of the vegetable or animal 
world now existing upon the earth, or which we have 
any evidence for believing to have existed at any former 
period, appear to have received, at the first moment of 
their existence, from the hands of the Creator, the full 
and complete definite constitution assigned to them, in 
all its perfection ; and, as far as we are able to trace, 
they existed in the remotest ages, in as perfect a con- 
dition as they do at present. Not an atom of evidence 
can be produced, to shew that there has been any pro- 
gressive improvement in any one of them. We have, 
therefore, the analogy of all nature for concluding that 
man also, at the period of his creation, received his 
definite constitution at once, in all its fulness, and in all 
its perfection. 

The earliest accounts we receive of the human race, 
lead to the inevitable conclusion, that in • the first ages 
of the world man possessed all the powers of body and 
mind, in at least as great, or more probably in greater, 
perfection than he does at present ; and the most ancient 
relics of human genius, as well as the most ancient 
indications of cerebral development, confirm this con- 
clusion in its fullest extent. 

If, then, in the present case, we are to be guided by 



52 THE DOCTRINE OF DIVINES 

the ordinary rules of evidence, we can only come to one 
conclusion, namely, that the statement in Genesis, having 
all analogy, and all the evidence of fact in its favour, 
must be held as proved to be true ; and, e contra, that 
the theory of Mr Combe, having all the presumptions 
of analogy, and all the evidence of fact against it, must 
be held as demonstrated to be false. 

Holding it then as proved, that man, like the other 
works of the Almighty Creator, was made, at the first, 
with all his powers and capacities perfect, is the second 
part of the statement true, or is it not, that the world, 
thus created perfect, " fell into derangement ?" And 
here, I think, we shall not have occasion to go into any 
long argument, for if we assume original perfection, the 
doctrine of a fall from that state of perfection, by 
whatever means produced, follows as a necessary con- 
sequence, all parties being agreed that at present the 
human race is very far from being in a state of perfec- 
tion. Mr Combe himself, upon this point, admits all 
that is any where contended for ; for what is the whole 
aim and object of his book, but to shew that the world, 
and every thing in it relating to man, his faculties, his 
moral feelings, and his relations to external objects, is 
now in disorder, and has always been so ? " Man," he 
states, " ignorant and uncivilized, is a ferocious, sensual, 
and superstitious savage." Have any of the divines 
spoken of by Mr Combe, who in their total ignorance 
of the elementary qualities of human nature, and of 
the relations between us and external objects, " con- 
demned the natural world," ever made any assertion 
stronger than this, with regard to the depth of that 
degeneracy and degradation to which man has been 
reduced from his primeval state ? The disorder both of 
the mental faculties, and of the relations of men with 
their Creator, with their brethren of the human race, 



COMPARED WITH MR COMBE'S THEORY. 53 

and with other objects, is too obvious to admit of 
dispute. I shall afterwards examine more particularly 
wherein that disorder consists, (a point on which Mr 
Combe seems to entertain views that are extremely 
imperfect and erroneous,) but I may hold the general 
fact as undoubted. It is admitted by Mr Combe, as 
well as by divines. The only remaining questions are, 
How has this admitted disorder been caused, and how 
is it to be remedied ? 

I may here take notice of a passage which occurs 
almost at the outset of Mr Combe's introductory chapter. 
" The sceptic has advanced arguments against religion, 
and crafty deceivers have in all ages founded systems 
of superstition on the disorder and inconsistency which are 
too readily admitted to he inseparable attributes of human 
existence on earth" 

Who are the crafty deceivers here meant? I am 
unwilling to admit the supposition, that it was intended 
by Mr Combe to include under this description our 
Lord and his disciples, whose system is expressly founded 
on the " disorder and inconsistency" which is throughout 
all Scripture asserted to be " an inseparable attribute of 
human existence on earth ;" but if this was not his inten- 
tion, he has not sufficiently guarded himself against 
misconstruction. He is certainly bound to explain what 
was his meaning. 

Mr Combe will doubtless ask, How do we, who main- 
tain the original high perfection of man, account, upon 
our principles, for the introduction of evil and disorder 
into the world ? As to the mode of its introduction, 
we can only refer to Genesis; but as to its cause, I 
answer, we do not attempt to account for it at all. We 
have no data furnished to our understandings, upon 
which any philosophical, rational, or even intelligible 
account can be given of this phenomenon. W T e have 

e2 



54 THE DOCTRINE OF DIVINES 

sufficient data to lead us to the conclusion, and even 
to what may be considered demonstration of the fact, 
that man was originally created perfect— 7 we have but 
too abundant data around us, and within us, to prove 
that he has degenerated from that perfection ; but how 
this degeneracy was caused, what was its origin, or 
what is to be its issue, are subjects upon which we have 
not even a glimmering of natural light to direct us, nor 
an atom of evidence upon which we can repose the 
smallest confidence. And can we wonder that this is 
the case, seeing that our faculties merely make us 
acquainted with certain facts and their relations, hut are 
not fitted to give us information either of the intimate 
nature of any one object, or of the real and efficient cause 
of any one event or phenomenon in the universe. We 
know by observation some of the external qualities of 
objects, but of their real nature and internal structure 
we know nothing. We do not know our own nature, 
still less the nature of God; and what other beings or 
principles may exist in the vast extended universe 
around us, we may conjecture, but we never can 
possibly know. We know not the cause nor the 
manner of the production of a single green leaf: what 
presumption, then, to suppose that we are capable of 
comprehending or developing the plan of the universe ! 

We hold, then, this question respecting the origin of 
evil, as one of those inscrutable mysteries into which the 
reason of man attempts to penetrate in vain. We con- 
sider that it lies on the other side of that boundary which 
separates the known from the unknown, the knowable 
from the unknowable ; and we are contented to take the 
account of what is related, or rather obscurely indicated 
respecting it in the sacred writings, as containing all 
that is necessary for us to know, and all that it is possible 
for us to learn on the subject. We are satisfied to take 



55 

the facts there stated or indicated, as facts, without pre- 
suming to scan them too narrowly with the imperfect 
lights of human reason, or, more properly speaking, to 
mix them up with the vain and unprofitable speculations 
of human folly. This is the correct, and the only philo- 
sophical mode of treating a subject like this, where no 
data exist accessible to us, for enabling us to form a safe 
and certain judgment. This is following the rule so 
wisely laid down by Lord Bacon, and " giving unto 
faith that which unto faith belongeth." 

Adhering to this path, the only one that in such a case 
can be trodden with safety, the teachers and expounders 
of our holy religion have carefully examined the sacred 
volume, and there they find, or think they find it stated, 
that God at first made man perfect and upright — made 
him " but a little lower than the angels, and crowned 
him with glory and honour ;" but that man in honour 
abode not — that he rebelled against God, and disobeyed 
him in the only point on which he was laid under any 
restraint — that he was consequently expelled from Para- 
dise — cut off from that intercourse with God which he 
had originally enjoyed, and sent forth into the world 
with the command to people and to subdue it, and the 
doom (in which justice is so admirably tempered with 
mercy) that from thenceforth he should eat his bread in 
the sweat of his brow. We read farther, that man, being 
thus left in a great measure to his own devices, soon fell 
into all sorts of irregularities and crimes ; that the first- 
born of our first parents was a murderer ; and that 
wickedness multiplied so rapidly, that the earth was 
filled with violence, and that the thoughts of men's 
minds was only evil continually; so that at last God 
determined to destroy the world by a flood, only inter- 
posing to save one family who had preserved in some 
degree the knowledge and the worship of his name.. 



56 THE DOCTRINE OF DIVINES 

We farther learn, that soon after this catastrophe, 
when men began again to multiply on the earth, they 
were induced, by causes which we need not here inves- 
tigate, but some of which will be sufficiently obvious, to 
diperse themselves into different countries, to the east 
and to the west, and several great kingdoms soon arose, 
as we have seen, to the utmost height of prosperity and 
splendour. From this period the stream of sacred 
history begins to be mingled with that of the profane, 
and some account, more or less distinct, has been 
preserved of almost all the most remarkable tribes who 
have since inhabited the different regions of the globe. 

We may here remark, that although we nowhere find 
among other nations the same full and distinct narrative 
of these events as is contained in the writings of the 
great lawgiver of the Jews, yet the scanty traditions, 
and meagre fragments of history preserved by other 
nations, are, ,as far as they go, quite in accordance with 
that narrative. We have found traces of the tradition 
of a deluge in Assyria, in Greece, in India, in China, 
and even, it is said, in America. The most ancient 
nations, and those who have preserved any thing like 
authentic records of their origin, universally concur in 
attributing that origin to a period within that which 
Moses has assigned to the great catastrophe, in no case 
much exceeding four thousand years before the present 
day. This coincidence, as observed by Baron Cuvier, 
is far too remarkable to have occurred by chance, 
between nations so far separated by distance, and so 
dissimilar in laws, religion, manners, and language; and 
there is no rational way of accounting for it, except that 
it is founded in truth. 

We may also take the opportunity of remarking, that 
on this point of the recent introduction of man into the 
world, at least as an inhabitant of the countries which 



COMPARED WITH MR COMBE'S THEORY. 57 

he now occupies, history is entirely in harmony with 
the evidence arising from geological research. On 
whatever other points geologists may differ, in this they 
are agreed, that no human remains have been found in 
even the most recent stratified depositions.* 

All those nations which we find established soon after 
the period of the Flood, (with the exception of one 
which, for our present purpose, may be left out of view,) 
had not merely, like our first parents after the Fall, lost 
communion with God, but soon even lost all knowledge 
of his name, his person, and character. Although they 
had before them the attributes of that character visibly 
manifested to them in the works which he had made, so 
that, as St Paul says, they " were without excuse," such 
was the perverseness and depravity of the human heart, 
that they wilfully shut their eyes to the light which was 

* Lyell, the latest authority on this subject, concurs' in this respect 
with Cuvier, and all former geologists. He says, " I need not dwell 
on the proofs of the low antiquity of our species, for it is not contro- 
verted by any experienced geologist : indeed, the real difficulty consists 
in tracing back the signs of man's existence on the earth, to that com- 
paratively modern period, when species, now his contemporaries, began 
to predominate. If there be a difference of opinion respecting the 
occurrence in certain deposits of the remains of man and his works, it is 
always in reference to strata confessedly of the most modern order ; and 
it is never pretended that our race co-existed with assemblages of animals 
and plants, of which all, or even a great part of the species are extinct. 
From the concurrent testimony of history and tradition, we learn that 
parts of Europe, now the most fertile and most completely subjected to 
the dominion of man, were, less than three thousand years ago, covered 
with forests, and the abode of wild beasts. The archives of nature are 
in perfect accordance with historical records; and when we lay open the 
most superficial covering of peat, we sometimes find therein the canoes 
of the savage, together with huge antlers of the wild stag, or horns of 
the wild bull, in caves now open to the day in various parts of Europe, 
the bones of large beasts of prey occur in abundance ; and they indicate, 
that at periods comparatively modern in the history of the globe, the 
ascendency of man, if he existed at all, had scarcely been felt by the 
brutes." 



58 THE DOCTRINE OF DIVINES 

thus vouchsafed to them. As, however, the instinctive 
principles of the nature within them imperatively 
demanded an object of worship, in place 'of continuing 
to adore one God, the creator of heaven and earth, they 
transferred the worship properly due to him to the per- 
sons of kings and conquerors — to inanimate objects, 
such as the sun and moon — to animals, and even to 
stocks and stones, the workmanship of their own hands. 
They personified and deified the passions, and even the 
lowest vices of human nature. War, drunkenness, and 
debauchery, and even theft,* had each its tutelary god, 
and the mode of worship was made to correspond to 
the supposed attributes of the deity. In such circum- 
stances, the morality of these ancient nations soon 
became equally depraved as their faith ; and we may 
conceive what was the ordinary standard of conduct 
among the laity, when we find crimes of every shade 
and die perpetrated under the name of religion, and 
under the sanction of their priests. It is remarkable, 
too, that all this took place, not merely among the 
ignorant and barbarous tribes, many of whom remained 
comparatively free from such enormities, but that the 
abominations I speak of were carried to the greatest 
height by those nations which attained to the highest 
point of intelligence and refinement. It was not among 
the barbarous hordes of Scythia and Bactria, that the 
wickedness of a demoralizing idolatry was carried to its 
greatest excess, but among the comparatively civilized 
and cultivated nations of Babylonia and Egypt, of 
Greece and Rome. 

To this cause, undoubtedly, it is to be attributed that 
all these nations, after a short-lived period of prosperity, 
began to decline, and continued to sink, from one 

* Mars, Bacchus, Venus, and Mercury. 



COMPARED WITH MR COMBE'S THEORY. 59 

degree of degeneracy to another, till they fell into utter 
ruin. Thus, from the first rise of the earliest of these 
great monarchies, down to the period of the Christian 
era, so far from mankind shewing any symptoms of pro- 
gressive improvement, the symptoms, it is melancholy 
to observe, were almost entirely the other way. The 
seasons of virtue and prosperity were as transitory and 
fleeting as they were brilliant; while the decline, in 
every case, was lingering, gradual, and hopeless, but 
constantly progressive, like the slow working of a fever 
after a period of unnatural excitement. No doubt, at 
the period when Christ appeared, the last of these 
empires, the Roman, had attained apparently to its 
utmost extent and splendour, but it was internally rotten 
to the core ; the spirit which had reared it was dead ; 
the elements of its destruction were actively at work, 
and it already tottered to its fall ; and though that fall 
was protracted, and its ultimate and final extinction 
delayed for the marvellous period of fourteen hundred 
years, its doom was not the less certain, and so far as 
the destinies of mankind were concerned, may even be 
said to have actually taken place. 

Thus all the information derived from human testi- 
mony, and from the history of past ages, seems to 
coincide with the intimations of Scripture, that, during 
this long period, the human race was gradually dete- 
riorating. It may be objected, that this is inconsistent 
with what we have observed as to the greatness and 
civilization of those ancient monarchies whose monu- 
ments we have particularized. It may be said, that 
before these great monarchies could fall into decay, they 
must first have risen to greatness ; and that this implies 
in each a period, longer or shorter, of some kind of 
progressive improvement. To this, I answer, first, that 
there is no proof that the original founders and fathers 



60 THE DOCTRINE OF DIVINES 

of these great states ever were sunk in barbarism. The 
greatest of them, and those who seem to have possessed 
the arts and sciences in the highest perfection, are those 
which appear to have separated the earliest from the 
original stock, — the immediate descendants of the 
primeval race, from whom, of course, they must have 
derived a great part of their knowledge. But, secondly, 
although the natural stimulus given to the faculties, by 
the excitement of colonization and conquest, and the 
acquisition and cultivation of new and fertile territories, 
must have, for a time, operated powerfully in calling 
forth the energies of a people, sharpening and improving 
their intellects, and bringing all their powers into the 
most favourable modes of action ; and though it be true, 
that in this way improvement did take place, to a certain 
extent, and during a limited period, yet the fact un- 
doubtedly is — and the history of these nations proves it 
to have been so — that this course of improvement was 
never permanent, but that, as soon as they had attained 
to their greatest elevation, and when the stimuli of con- 
quest and acquisition was withdrawn, they all of them, 
without exception, began to decline, and continued to 
do so down to the period of their final ruin. That this 
is a true statement of the progress of the four great 
monarchies, the most refined and civilized part of man- 
kind, is, I think, sufficiently obvious ; but with regard to 
the rest of the human race, the case is so plain as to be 
beyond the possibility of contradiction. The nations who 
immediately touched upon the primeval seat of popula- 
tion, carried with them at their first removal, or acquired 
at intervals, some portion of the arts and knowledge 
belonging to the original stock ; but those who pushed 
their adventurous excursions farther into the wildernesses 
around them, the outposts and videttes of society, the 
squatters and backwoodsmen of the ancient world, from 



COMPARED WITH MR COMBE'S THEORY. 61 

the necessities of their situation, the constant warfare in 
which they were engaged with the beasts of the forest, 
and the want of communication with the countries they 
had left, soon lost all traces of civilization, and sunk, in 
the course of generations, into the savage state. This 
is not a fanciful picture, but results naturally and 
necessarily from the circumstances of the race, and is 
confirmed by all that w r e know of their past and present 
condition. 



CHAPTER III. 



THE REMEDY FOR EXISTING EVILS. 



Having thus deduced, both from reason and reve- 
lation, the doctrine that man was made perfect, and 
having abundant evidence of his declension from that 
state, we now come to the only remaining question, 
What is the remedy for this declension, and how is the 
race to be raised again to its original perfection ? 

In reference to this, Mr Combe has stated the prac- 
tical views to which the two opposite systems already 
alluded to naturally lead, and stated them quite correctly. 
" If," he observes, " the former view be sound," namely, 
that the world is progressive, and contains within itself 
the elements of improvement, which time will evolve and 
bring to maturity, " the first object of man, as an intelli- 
gent being in quest of happiness, must be to study the 
elements of external nature and their capabilities, the 
elementary qualities of his own nature and their applica- 
tions, and the relationship between them. His second 

F 



62 THE REMEDY FOR EXISTING EVILS. 

object will be to discover and carry into effect the con- 
ditions, physical, moral, and intellectual, which, in virtue 
of this constitution, require to be realized before the 
fullest enjoyment of which he is capable can be obtained." 

These are precisely the objects and mode of investi- 
gation proposed to themselves by the heathen philoso- 
phers in their inquiries respecting the supreme good, and 
these are the proper objects for those who have not been 
favoured with a revelation. 

"According to the second view of creation," — the 
original perfection and subsequent fall of man, and his 
own want of power to regain his original state, — "no 
good," he says, " can be expected from the evolution of 
nature's elements, these being all essentially disordered, 
and human improvement must be derived chiefly from 
spiritual influences. In short, according to it, science, 
philosophy, and all arrangements of the physical, moral, 
and intellectual elements of nature, are subordinate in 
their effects on human happiness on earth, to religious 
faith." 

Mr Combe has here stated correctly the doctrine of 
divines on 'this subject, drawn from the express declara- 
tions of Scripture.* 

* I have been accused of admitting too easily the account here 
given by Mr Combe of the doctrine of divines in regard to the 
comparative value of philosophical and religious knowledge ; and it 
has been alleged that he has given an exaggerated and incorrect state- 
ment of that doctrine. I am not aware that he has done so, keeping 
it in view that it is the comparative importance of these two kinds of 
knowledge that is here spoken of. No one will be so foolish as to 
suppose, that it is ever maintained by divines, or intended to be intima- 
ted in Scripture, that the cultivation of natural science is of no use. 
All that I understand them to maintain, and all that I conceive to be 
conveyed in the texts here quoted, is this, that the speculations of 
philosophy, and all arrangements of the physical, moral, and intellectual 
elements of man's nature which can be effected by means of science, are 
comparatively worthless as means of promoting the improvement and 
happiness of the human race, either in reference to the present or a 



THE REMEDY EOR EXISTING EVILS. 63 

The relative value of natural science and religious 
faith is aptly set forth in the following precepts : — 

" Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or 
what you shall drink, nor yet for your body, what ye 
shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, or the 
body than raiment?" 

" Behold the fowls of the air, they sow not, neither 
do they reap, nor gather into barns ; yet your heavenly 
Father feedeth them." 

" Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit 
to his stature ?" 

" Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we 
eat, or what shall we drink, or wherewithal shall we be 
clothed ; (for after all these things do the Gentiles seek ;) 
for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of 
these things." 

" But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his 
righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto 
you." 

The effect of human science, as tending, in many 
cases, to render the heart dead to spiritual influences, is 
indicated in the following passage, — "I thank thee, O 
Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid 
these things (the doctrines of the Gospel) from the wise 
and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. Even 
so, Father, for so it seemeth good in thy sight." 

The comparative futility and emptiness of all human 
pursuits, which are followed after with so much care 
and trouble, when contrasted with the value of spiritual 
influences, is expressively pointed out in the following 

future life ; in other words, that they are, and ever must be, subordinate 
in their effects upon man's improvement and happiness, to an enlightened 
religious faith. I wish this to be distinctly kept in view by the readc 
in perusing what follows, and then no one will be in danger of misap- 
prehending my meaning. 



64 FIRST PROPAGATION OF CHRISTIANITY, 

admonition, — "Thou art careful and troubled about 
many things ; but one thing is needful." 

Of a surety Mr Combe would have us ■ to be careful 
and troubled about many things. But to return. 

Mr Combe having thus stated the practical results of 
his system, and that of the heathen philosophers on the 
one hand, and the doctrine of the Christian divines 
on the other, and having put the matter upon a fair 
footing, by stating them as severally dependant on their 
respective premises, the question may be considered as 
decided, for we think we have sufficiently proved, in the 
former part of this section, that the system proposed by 
Mr Combe, as to the origin and progress of the human 
race, is utterly false and untenable, and that the doctrines 
of the divines on the same subject, are not only con- 
formable to Scripture, but are supported by every 
species of evidence which it is possible to bring to bear 
on such a subject. 

Will Mr Combe, then, abide by the terms he has 
proposed ? His theory of a progressive system being 
proved to be false, will he abandon his conclusions as to 
what is the " chief end of man?" And the doctrines 
of the original perfection, and fall of man being proved, 
will he embrace the doctrine of divines as to the effi- 
cacy of spiritual influences ? Or are these things, 
indeed, hidden from the wise and prudent, and only 
revealed to babes ? 

So standing the question, I think I may safely pass 
over all that Mr Combe has said, as to the neglect, by 
our divines, of the aids of human speculation, and 
human philosophy ; their " ignorance of the elementary 
qualities of human nature, and of the influence of 
organization on the mental powers." I may safely pass 
over all that he has said as to " the. first great etTor, the 
theological doctrine of the corruption and disorder of 



AND ITS EFFECTS. 65 

human nature," the actual and literal truth of which is 
demonstrated as clearly as any proposition in Euclid. 
And leaving all these points, I shall return again to the 
old almanac, and shew, by reference to undoubted facts, 
what Christianity has done during the short, the very 
short period that its doctrines have been extensively 
taught in any tolerable purity. 

There can be no doubt, that at its first promulgation 
by the Apostles, the doctrines of the Gospel spread 
with a rapidity that is without any example, such as is 
not to be accounted for but by its adaptation to the 
spiritual wants of the human mind, and the miracu- 
lous gifts bestowed upon its first teachers, as evidences 
of the truth of their mission. Its effects, also, on those 
who embraced it, were at this period undoubtedly great. 
Indeed, it can hardly be conceived by us, to whom its 
doctrines are familiar from our youth, what was likely 
to be the effect of them when advanced as something 
new — when the events connected with them had just 
recently taken place, and when those were proclaimed 
by men endowed with miraculous powers, who were 
eye-witnesses of the facts to which they bore their 
testimony. Long before the conclusion of the first 
century, we are informed, that notwithstanding of the 
contempt of the philosophers, and the persecution of the 
priests and emperors, Christianity had extended its 
roots far and wide throughout the mighty bounds of 
the Roman empire. Not only were churches erected 
in Asia and in Greece, and the doctrine preached else- 
where, through the provinces, from Ethiopia and India 
to distant Britain, but w T e are told there were Christians 
to be found among every class of society in Rome 
itself; and at the time when persecution was raging 
against Christians with the utmost fury, there were 

f 2 



66 MORAL IMPROVEMENTS 

Christians on the bench, and in the senate, and even 
among the officers in the imperial palace. 

Its effect upon those who cordially embraced it is 
d on the authority of its enemies, to have been 
great: but its p::_ ::::ped before it could 

produce an extensifE reformation upon the masses of 
society, partly by the gross corruption of manners and 
of morals that pervaded every corner of the empire, from 
Rome itself, that colluries gentium, where every species 
is carried to its extreme, to the distant 
and semibarbarous provinces — partly to the terrible 
persecutions to which from time to time Chris: 
were exposed — but partly and chiefly to the corruption 
of Christianity : -elf. by its being mixed up, in order to 
accommodate it to the taste of the people and their 
rulers, with the superstitions of Paganism, and the 
speculations of what was then called philosophy. 

Thus, before Christianity was originally introduced 
into the Roman empire, the Roman world was 
thoroughly corrupted; and before it was adopted as 
the religion of the state, it was in some degree corrupted 
itself, diongh not so entirely as it was in after ages under 
the influence, and by the inventions, of the Roman 
hierarchy. From this time, therefore, till the period of 
the Reformation, although there was perhaps no period 
when the pu: ■: es of Christianity were altogether 

extinguished, and though these were always kept alive 
in some corner or other of the Church, ye:, so far as 
regarded the world at large, or even that part of it 
where Christianity nominally prevailed, its light shone 
with a very taint and imperfect lustre. But the sun 
was in the heavens, though its full radiance was inter- 
cepted by clouds and vapours. Christianity, thooga 
corrupted, was Christianity still ; and it was impossible 
that it could be so disguised and altered, but that some 



DERIVED FROM CHRISTIANITY. 67 

fragment of the true faith, some remnant of a pure 
morality, should not remain, and make a due impression 
on its votaries. The leaven was hid in the meal, and 
though still far from having thoroughly impregnated 
the mass, yet many of its particles were so impregnated. 
So stood matters till the sixteenth century, when the 
simultaneous occurrence of these two great events — the 
Reformation, and the invention of printing — opened a 
new era in the history of mankind. It is from this 
period, undoubtedly, that we are to date the effectual 
promulgation of Gospel truth throughout any con- 
siderable portion of Europe ; and accordingly, we are 
to judge of its effects solely, or chiefly, by what it has 
accomplished since that period. Taking the above 
explanation along with us, as to the comparatively 
short period of its full operation, I shall proceed to 
mention what it has done, and what changes have 
taken place in the manners of society, that may fairly 
be attributed to its influence. 

1. I may mention the almost total extinction of 
certain crimes, which were very general at least, if not 
universal, in the heathen world ; and the considerable 
mitigation of others, which, it must be confessed, still 
prevail in too great a degree. The gross licentiousness 
and unnatural practices prevalent among the Romans 
at a time when the empire was in its most palmy state, 
are sufficiently notorious. It is only necessary to refer 
to their own writers, Tacitus, Suetonius, Juvenal, 
Petronius Arbiter, and even the elegant Virgil, to shew 
that certain crimes were then practised openly, and 
without shame, which, as St Paul says, are not so much 
as to be named among Christians. 

2. It has raised the character and improved the con- 
dition of the female sex, 1st, By abolishing polygamy ; 
2d, By prohibiting divorce, except in the case of conjugal 



68 MORAL IMPROVEMENTS 

infidelity. Females were, in heathen times, universally 
treated as an inferior part of the race, and subjected 
completely to the will, and even the caprice and tyranny 
of the male sex. By the universal law of Christian 
states, the rights of the sexes are now placed as nearly 
as possible on a footing of equality. The status of 
females being thus improved, their character has improved 
along with it. Being now treated with respect, they have 
been taught to respect themselves, and the consequences 
have been most beneficial to society. Their opinions 
are listened to — their approbation coveted — their taste 
consulted — their comfort sedulously cared for — and their 
influence in all the arrangements of society little, if at 
all, inferior to that of the other sex. To this influence 
is owing much of the good order, decency, and propriety 
of private life, in which, it will not be denied, the ancients 
were decidedly inferior to the moderns. And it must 
not be forgotten, that if Christianity has been the means 
of raising the condition and improving the character of 
the female sex, their influence has, on the other hand, 
been very decidedly favourable to Christianity. The 
female mind is more generally open to religious impres- 
sions thsn the male — more readily accepts, and more 
eagerly embraces the aids of spiritual influences; and 
when we consider the effect this must have on the other 
sex, and, above all, on the tender minds of the youth of 
both sexes, who, during the earlier part of their lives, 
are intrusted almost entirely to the care of their mothers, 
it is easy to see how powerful an instrument this must 
be for the amelioration of society. 

3. Christianity has been the means of abolishing 
slavery. It is well known that slavery, and the purchase 
and sale of captives, existed universally in the ancient 
world ; and although there is no express declaration in 
Scripture making it unlawful, yet it is obvious that the 



DERIVED FROM CHRISTIANITY. 69 

whole tendency and spirit of Christian feelings and prin- 
ciples is against the practice. There is no system that 
so powerfully and effectually teaches the original equality 
of all mankind, as that which inculcates the infinite value 
of the human soul, and the obligation upon all to love 
their brethren (without exception) as themselves. Hence 
it has arisen, that for many centuries slavery has been 
abolished in all the European Christian states ; and so 
utterly repugnant is it considered to the genius and spirit 
of our own constitution, that it has been long since 
declared by our law authorities, that the moment a slave 
touches British ground he is free. This of itself might 
be regarded as a victory of no small value over the selfish 
prejudices and inveterate customs of antiquity; but 
another victory — nobler still, because more hardly won — 
has been achieved by the same principles in our own day. 
Although British laws did not permit slavery in our own 
soil, a supposed necessity, countenanced by the example 
of other nations, continued to sanction it in our colonies. 
The history of the rise and progress of West India 
slavery, and of the slave trade, need not here be detailed, 
as they are known to all ; and equally well known were 
the eager, strenuous, and long-continued attempts to put 
an end to the cruel and nefarious traffic in " the bodies 
and the souls of men," These attempts were at last 
crowned with success ; and no sooner was this point 
achieved, but an equally strenuous series of efforts began, 
first to ameliorate the condition of the slave, and finally 
to abolish slavery altogether. This question took a 
strong hold of the public mind, in so much, that latterly 
it became only a question of time, all being agreed on 
the propriety of abolishing slavery so soon as it could be 
done without detriment to the slave. The question was 
at last decided ; and whether the proper time has been 
chosen or not, all are satisfied, that on principle it has 



70 MORAL IMPROVEMENTS 

been decided rightly ; and Mr Combe himself admits, 
that no parallel instance can be produced of so noble a 
sacrifice being made by any nation at the shrine of 
humanity and justice. But to what, I ask, has been 
owing the merit of the sacrifice — the glory of the 
victory ? Is it to the peculiar doctrines of any sect of 
philosophers — the speculations of political economists — 
or the far-searching views of practical legislators ? Does 
mankind owe the abolition of slavery to Phrenology ? 
Not to any of all these, but to the pure and salutary 
influence of Christianity alone, are these effects to be 
ascribed. They are a practical application of the simple 
and sublime maxim, to " do to others as we would have 
others do to us." Every one knows that these questions 
were first stirred by a small and originally uninfluential 
body of Christians, considered by many to be visionaries 
and fanatics, and designated, not in token of respect, 
but of derision, as " the saints." But in this case, as in 
many others, it has been shewn that God has chosen the 
weak things of the world to confound the strong, and 
the foolish things of the world to confound the wise. It 
was neither by superior talent or eloquence, nor the 
support of eminent station or political power, that the 
cause of the abolition prospered. The contest was begun, 
continued, and persevered in, sometimes even against 
hope, by a steady adherence to Christian principle, 
which, addressing itself to the higher feelings and senti- 
ments of the public, at last brought the question to a 
successful termination. In what country, not Christian, 
has such a victory been achieved, and by such means ? 

4. Christianity has improved the condition of the 
people generally, by the institution of the Sabbath. The 
full value of such an institution can hardly be understood 
by those who are exempted by their situation from the 
constant pressure of daily labour. The rich and idle, or 



DERIVED FROM CHRISTIANITY. 71 

those who are only busied in the pursuit of pleasure, 
can have no conception of the relief which the Sabbath 
affords to the poor man, who has been engaged in some 
laborious occupation during the previous six days. To 
him, a mere respite from toil is not ease merely, but 
positive enjoyment. It is like a release from the dull 
restraint of the school to the schoolboy, like the opening 
of the prison door to the captive. Mr Combe will not 
deny that such an institution is suited to the condition 
and the faculties^ of man, one law of which is, that the 
faculties both of mind and body require alternate exer- 
cise and rest, and that if too long or too intensely exerted, 
they lose their tone, and become incapable of duly per- 
forming their functions. It may be said, that the same 
object might be attained, by diminishing the hours of 
labour in each day ; but how could such a regulation be 
established by law ? if established, how could it be 
enforced ? What multiplied rules would be required, 
and how many exceptions would be necessary to suit 
every imaginable case ! and how easily would such rules 
be evaded and made of none effect ! The institution of 
the Sabbath, on the other hand, is simple, and its 
enforcement, as far as necessary, is easy. It is the poor 
man's privilege, his property. Whatever may occur, 
that day, at least, is his own, and no taskmaster can, on 
that day, compel him to take up his burden. 

But the good effects of the Sabbath are not limited to 
the relief of one set of faculties, but extend farther to 
providing employment for another. It has not been 
ordained that man should, on that day, be freed from 
bodily toil, in order that he may spend the time in 
idleness and dissipation : his higher faculties are called 
into operation, and an opportunity is afforded him of 
exercising them, by attending the ordinances of public 
worship, and listening to the instructions of moral and 
religious teachers. 



72 MORAL IMPROVEMENTS 

5. But the improvement of the condition of the poor, 
effected by Christianity, does not end here. It has com- 
manded us, — and its commands are, to a great extent, 
carried into effect, in every country where Christianity 
is established — to feed the hungry, to clothe the naked, 
to visit the sick and the prisoner, to hear the cause of 
the widow and the oppressed. In this country, those 
injunctions have been attended to, and even with some 
degree of ostentation. Look at the provisions which our 
laws have made for the support of the poor, — provisions 
to which no objections have ever been alleged, except that 
they are too liberal, and that they encourage idleness 
and improvidence among the lower classes. Look at the 
magnificent national establishments for the support of 
those who have fought the battles of their country, and 
whom age and infirmity have disabled from farther 
service. Look at our establishments, in every city and 
district of the kingdom, for the cure of the sick and the 
diseased, for the succour of the maimed and the wounded 
among the poor, where the talents and the time of the 
most eminent professors of the healing art are employed, 
without fee or reward, in attendance upon those who 
have no other claims upon them than those of suffering 
humanity. These things do not strike us, because they 
are before our eyes every day : we take credit for the 
feelings which have prompted them, as if they had been 
the spontaneous suggestions of our own hearts; but we 
never think of the source from which they have been 
derived, or rather the cause which has called them into 
active operation. The fact is, we shall look in vain for 
such establishments in any but a Christian country. 
Among the ruins of ancient Rome, we find abundant 
remains of theatres and amphitheatres, the scenes of the 
most abominable cruelty — of temples, the abodes of the 
greatest superstitions — of palaces, of baths, and other 
appendages of taste and luxury ; but we shall search in 



DERIVED FROM CHRISTIANITY. 73 

vain for the ruins of an hospital, or any building dedi- 
cated to the relief of the poor, the suffering, and the 
destitute. 

6. We now come to the case of the prisoner. Prisons 
have existed in all countries, and all lands have pro- 
vided for the imprisonment of those whose crimes and 
irregularities have disturbed the peace and good order 
of society. It seems, however, to have been generally 
thought sufficient with regard to such persons, to shut 
them up, without its being necessary to attend, in any 
respect, to their comfort ; and, accordingly, both in 
ancient and modern times, dungeons and jails have 
not been places of confinement merely, but the abodes 
of squalid wretchedness, of pestilential disease, and of 
misery in all its forms. Howard was the first in this 
country to call the public attention to this crying 
evil, and he has been followed by many others, who 
have been and who are persevering in their efforts 
to mitigate the hardships and improve the condition of 
prisoners. That these have in general been persons 
naturally of a humane disposition, need not be denied ; 
but for such efforts, daily experience shews, mere 
benevolent feeling is not sufficient, without the aid of 
steady Christian principle, Accordingly, it may with 
safety be predicated, that all who have effectually laboured 
in this field — the Howards, the Fowell Buxtons, the 
Frys, and others — have been sincere, pious, and zealous 
Christians, and so in general have that portion of the 
public by whom their efforts have been most warmly 
seconded. Much has been done by their benevolent 
efforts ; and so far have the incidental evils of imprison- 
ment been alleviated, that by some it is now hardly 
regarded as a punishment ; and the difficulty now is, to 
render the restraint of a prison sufficiently severe, to 
operate as a check to crime. 

& 



74 MORAL AND OTHER IMPROVEMENTS 

7. But it is not in these great national establishments 
alone that the operation of this improvement is to be 
seen; but in every direction, wherever good is to be 
done, or suffering or evil to be allayed, Christian feeling 
is at hand to prompt and to supply a remedy. Hence 
our establishments for the reception and cure of the 
deaf, the blind, and the insane ; dispensaries for the 
supply of medicines and advice to the poor, gratis ; 
societies for visiting the destitute sick, for furnishing 
clothing to the poor at a cheap and easy rate, for the 
relief of the aged and indigent, and many others which 
I need not enumerate. By whom are these establish- 
ments and societies maintained, by whom were they 
originated, and by whose contributions supported ? Has 
it been by the philosophers? No, it has been by humble, 
quiet, and unpretending Christians. 

8. Our establishments for education are all originally 
to be referred to the same source. It is not matter of 
doubt, but may be proved by historical documents, that 
all our establishments of this kind, from the universities 
down to the parochial schools, owed their origin, either 
to the efforts of the clergy, or to the gifts and bequests 
of pious individuals incited by their example, or under 
the influence of a kindred feeling. The great English 
seminaries were, in their origin, confessedly monastic, 
and this is now alleged against them as matter of reproach. 
The parochial schools of Scotland were established at or 
soon after the Reformation, by the same men who settled 
the form and discipline of our Church, and the clergy 
of the respective presbyteries are still the visiters of 
these primitive but useful seminaries. By these institu- 
tions, secular learning and general information have 
been diffused over the land, along with moral and 
religious instruction. Some establishments go farther 
than this, and in various places large masses of property 



DERIVED FROM CHRISTIANITY. 75 

have been bequeathed for the pious and charitable pur- 
pose of training up the young to usefulness and virtue. 
The children of poor but respectable parents are received 
into these institutions, are fed, clothed, and taught for 
several years, and, after receiving an education better 
than is attainable by many of a higher class, are appren- 
ticed to trades, and receive a sum of money for the 
purpose of establishing them in business. 

9. With regard to the administration of justice, and 
the provisions made for dispensing it with an even hand, 
both to rich and poor, I may refer to one of the earliest 
Acts of our Scottish Parliaments, which, though enacted 
in an age comparatively rude, evinces the purest spirit 
of justice and benevolence, legislative wisdom, and 
Christian philanthropy. In its expression it is quite per- 
fect, and forms an admirable contrast to the confused, 
verbose, and cumbersome style of our Acts of Parliament 
in the present day. After describing the judges before 
whom causes shall be brought, it proceeds thus : — " To 
the quhilk judges, all and sindrie, the King shall give 
strait commandement, alsweil within regalities as out- 
with, under all paine and charge that may follow, that 
alsweil to pure as to rich, but fraude or guile, they doe 
full law and justice. And gif there be onie pure creature, 
that for fault of cuning or dispenses, can not or may not 
follow his causes, the King, for the love of GOD, sail 
ordain that the judge, before guham the cause suld be 
determined, purvey and get a leill and a wise advocate to 
follow sic pure creature's causes. And gif sic causes be 
obtained, the wranger sail assyth baith the party skaithed, 
and the advocate's costs and travale. And gif the judge 
refuses to do the law evinly as is before said, the party 
compleinand sail have recourse to the King, quha sail 
see rigorously punished sic judges, that it sail be exemple 
till all uthers." Act 2d Parliament of King James I. 
1424, c. 24. 



76 MORAL AND OTHER IMPROVEMENTS 

The above enactment affords a clear and affecting 
proof of the influence of Christian principles in an age 
little removed from barbarism, at a time when it will not 
be pretended that the feeling it evinces could have been 
derived from any other source. It has been acted upon 
ever since, and never more strictly, according to its 
spirit, than at the present day; and the only incon- 
venience attending it is, that cases occasionally occur 
where poor persons, from a litigious or malicious spirit, 
may be enabled by it to persecute those in better circum- 
stances with actions at law, which rest on no solid ground 
of reason or justice. Even in cases of this description, 
however, it has been decided, that it is contrary to the 
spirit of our law to decern for costs against a poor 
litigant, though he have been never so much in the 
wrong ; it being thought better to submit to this kind of 
injustice, than to throw obstacles in the way of hearing 
the cause of the poor, the widow, and the fatherless. 

That the means thus employed for promoting the 
general improvement of the people have not been with- 
out effect, may be evident, on considering what was the 
state of the country and its population a little more than 
a century since, and what is that condition now. 

Fletcher of Salton, writing in the year 1698, ten 
years after the Revolution, gives the following account 
of the state of Scotland at that period. " There are at 
this day, in Scotland, besides a great number of families 
very meanly provided for by the Church boxes, (who, 
with living upon bad food, fall into various diseases,) 
two hundred thousand people begging from door to 
door. These are not only noways advantageous, but a 
very grievous burden to so poor a country ; and though 
the number of these be perhaps double to what it was 
formerly, by reason of the present great distress, yet, in 
all times, there have been about one hundred thousand 



DERIVED FROM CHRISTIANITY. 77 

of these vagabonds, who have lived without any regard 
or submission either to the laws of the land, or even 
those of God or nature.' , Then follows a description 
of crimes too gross to be particularized ; and he after- 
wards proceeds thus: — " No magistrate could ever 
discover or be informed which way any of these wretches 
died, or that they were ever baptized. Many murders 
have deen discovered among them, and they are not 
only a most unspeakable oppression to poor tenants, 
(who, if they give not bread or some sort of provision 
to perhaps forty such villains in one day, are sure to be 
insulted by them,) but they rob many poor people who 
live in houses distant from any neighbourhood. In 
years of plenty, many thousands of them meet together 
in the mountains, where they feast and riot for many 
days; and at country weddings, markets, burials, and 
other like public occasions, they are to be seen, both 
men and women, perpetually drunk, cursing, blasphe- 
ming, and fighting together." Such is Fletcher's account, 
and as at this period the population of Scotland amounted 
to only one million, so it is plain there must have been 
about a fifth of the whole living in profligacy or by 
plunder. 

In the year 1717, or nineteen years afterwards, the 
system of pastoral and parochial instruction having, in 
the mean time, been in full and active operation, the* 
following statement is given by Daniel Defoe, whose 
general accuracy is unquestionable. " The people," says 
he, " are restrained in the ordinary practice of common 
immoralities, such as swearing, drunkenness, slander, 
licentiousness, and the like ; as to theft, murder, and 
other capital crimes, they come under the cognizance of 
the civil magistrate as in other countries ; but in those 
things which the Church has power to punish, the people 
being constantly and impartially prosecuted, that is, 

g2 



78 MORAL AND OTHER IMPROVEMENTS 

subjected to the discipline of the Church, they are thereby 
the more restrained, kept sober and under government, 
and you pass through twenty towns in Scotland, with- 
out seeing any broil, or hearing any oath sworn in the 
streets." It will be admitted that the same general good 
order, decency, and sobriety, prevail throughout the 
country at this day, excepting in those large towns and 
villages where the population has, by its rapid increase, 
outgrown the means of religious and moral instruction. 

Mr Combe has, in one part of his work, taken some 
trouble in collecting instances of the persecution of 
watches in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, in 
different parts of Europe, to which he might have added 
a vast amount of similar instances in New England 
within the same period. He has attributed this, and 
certainly with justice, to the mistaken zeal of pious 
Christians, and an erroneous interpretation, or rather 
an injudicious application, of certain texts of Scripture. 

This is apparently turned by him into a weapon of 
attack against Scripture itself, or at least an argument 
to prove that no reliance can be placed on its declara- 
tions, seeing that it is liable to be misinterpreted and 
misapplied. But it must be owned to be straining the 
matter beyond all bounds of fair inference, to argue, 
from an acknowledged abuse of any thing, against its 
fair, and cautious, and legitimate use ; for were such 
arguments admitted, there is nothing in this wwld that 
may not be equally condemned. The persecution of the 
witches has now, for upwards of a century, been abolished, 
and admitted to have been the joint product of ignorance 
and fanaticism. Along w T ith these have vanished all the 
dreams of magical incantations, evil eyes, ghosts, omens, 
and every species of diablerie, the offspring of a certain 
traditionary lore handed down from the days of darkness 
and heathenism. For all this Christianity is not entirely 



DERIVED EROZU CHRISTIANITY. 79 

answerable, but if at one period the mistaken zeal of 
some of its votaries afforded encouragement to the bane, 
the enlightened efforts of its disciples in after times have 
supplied the antidote. The torturing and burning of 
witches was suppressed, not in consequence of its being 
proved irrational by any philosophical argument, but by 
its being felt to be contrary to Christian principles. The 
superstitions of the nursery, and the belief in ghosts 
and hobgoblins, lingered for some time longer, but are 
now effectually banished, not by the arguments of 
philosophy, but the influence of enlightened Christianity, 
by providing a supply of more useful and salutary in- 
struction for the infant mind, by many little works 
adapted to the capacities of the young, in which moral 
and religious truths are presented to them in the most 
attractive form, and in which every art is used to draw 
them to the love and practice of virtue. * 

* I may here mention, that in estimating the effect which Christianity, 
and Revelation generally, have produced in the world, we are not 
entirely to confine ourselves to Christian countries. A large portion of 
the earth has heen for many centuries, and still remains, under the 
influence of a religion which never would have had an origin, unless the 
Jewish and Christian revelations had been previously promulgated. It 
is undoubted that Mahomet borrowed many of the doctrines and precepts 
of the Koran from the writings of the Old and New Testament ; and 
it is even said, that be was assisted in the labour of composing his work 
by a Christian monk. Gross and absurd as many parts of that perfor- 
mance are. it must be admitted to contain something superior to the 
systems of Pagan idolatry which it superseded. The fundamental truth, 
that there is but one God, and the virtues which it recommends, of 
justice, and charity to the poor, must have been attended with beneficial 
effects. If this be admitted, — and it cannot, I think, be denied, — we 
are justified in claiming any improvement which may have been produced 
by Mahometanism among the rude tribes which embraced it, as one of the 
remote consequences of Christianity. Of course we do not lay stress 
upon this as adding much to the benefits which Christianity has conferred 
upon the world ; but if any one shall state the honesty, or other good 
qualities of the Turks, as, having arisen under a system independent of 
Christianity, it may be answered, that all which is good in that system 
was borrowed from Christianity. 



80 ON THE EFFICACY OF PREACHING 

Mr Combe winds up his remarks on the teaching of 
our divines, and its effects, in the following passage : — 
" It appears to me that one reason why vice and misery 
do not diminish in proportion to preaching, is, that the 
natural laws (that is, the rules of conduct discoverable by 
man's natural reason) are too much overlooked. The 
theological doctrine of the corruption and disorder of 
human nature," (a doctrine which is undeniably true,) 
"joined to the want of knowledge of real science, have 
probably been the causes why the professed servants of 
God have made so little use of his laws as revealed in 
creation, in instructing the people to live according to 
his will." Now, I do not deny that it may be very 
proper to instruct the people in the laws of the natural 
world, as revealed in creation, though it may be doubted 
whether the pulpit is the proper place whence such 
knowledge should be taught. But the question I wish 
to direct attention to at present is, whether it is so per- 
fectly true as Mr Combe assumes, that vice and misery 
do not diminish in proportion to preaching. Many of the 
facts already stated appear to lead to the conclusion, that 
in times past vice and misery have diminished in propor- 
tion to preaching, and that this is proved to have taken 
place in this very country on a scale of considerable 
magnitude. It has undoubtedly been as effectual in its 
way, in diminishing vice and misery in a moral, as the 
study and the improvement of medical science have been 
in a physical point of view. 

But I shall bring the matter nearer home, and shall 
recur to facts which I do not expect will or can be 
denied, shewing the effects that have been produced, 
principally, I will say, by zealous and judicious preach- 
ing, within our own remembrance, and in this very 
place where I am now writing. Let those who recollect 
tell what was the state of manners in this our northern 



AS A MEANS OF 13IPROVEMENT. 81 

metropolis, among the higher and middle classes of 
society, not more than half a century ago. At that time, 
and for a long period previous, the classes I refer to 
universally indulged in practices now as universally pro- 
scribed. They did not, to be sure, cheat, lie, and steal, 
but they did their utmost to injure their health and 
destroy their intellects, by habitual and excessive drink- 
ing. Hardly an entertainment took place at which the 
majority of the male guests did not drink to intoxica- 
tion. It was thought a disgrace to the landlord if any 
of them went away sober, and the mark of a mean and 
cowardly spirit, if any one attempted to shy his glass, or 
to escape the scene of inebriety. This feeling is graphi- 
cally described by Sir Walter Scott in his novel of 
Waverley, in his account of the revels at the Baron of 
Bradwardine's, and is alluded to by Burns in the well 
known lines, 

The first shall rise to gang awa, 

A silly coward loon is he ; 
The first beside his chair shall fa', 

He shall be king amang us three. 

This picture is not overcharged ; on the contrary, the 
half is not told. It was then no disgrace to a gentleman 
to be seen, or to be carried home, in a state of intoxica- 
tion. Now, it will be admitted, such things are not 
merely rare, but we may say absolutely unknown. 

But the physical part of the evil was not the worst. 
The conversation at these nocturnal orgies was even 
more offensive to moral feeling than the liquor that was 
swallowed. The topics chosen, and the mode of treating 
them, were of the grossest description. Not boys, but 
grave serious men, as they " chirped over their cups," 
endeavoured to outdo each other in a species of discourse 
that would not now be tolerated any where. Profanity 
was, in many cases, added to licentiousness ; and with 



82 ON THE EFFICACY OF PREACHING 

many this became so much a habit, that they hardly 
ever opened their lips without taking their Maker's 
name in vain in the most blasphemous and absurd im- 
precations. This nuisance is also abated, and nothing 
of the kind is heard in any thing like civilized society. 

It must not be supposed, however, that our ancestors 
were so grossly stupid, and so gratuitously wicked, as to 
love these enormities entirely for their own sake. Many 
of the men I speak of possessed superior talents and 
convivial powers of a high order: and amidst their gross 
licentiousness and profanity, displayed a degree of wild 
wit, and reckless unrestrained humour, tempered by 
occasional appeals to better feelings, so as to render the 
whole not less seductive to the mind, than the wine that 
sparkled in the cup was tempting to the taste. All 
this is true : and it may be not less true, that as our 
entertainments have become more decent, they have, in 
some degree, also become more dull : but this only 
enhances the merit of the victory that has undoubtedly 
been gained over a custom " more honoured in the 
breach than the observance." 

It followed, perhaps necessarily, from this state of 
manners, that among the professions called learned, 
particularly the gentlemen of the bar, the Sabbath was 
almost invariably and systematically devoted to secular 
employment. So little was it regarded by them as a day 
of rest, that it was actually chosen, as being less liable to 
interruption, for those parts of business requiring the 
closest and most unintermitted attention. Frequently, 
also, the evening was spent in a renewal of the same' 
festive pleasures which had employed the rest of the 
week, and certainly with no more restraint on the 
ebullitions of social glee. 

A worse evil than any I have mentioned, prevailed 
within the above period. Men were then not satisfied 



AS A MEANS OF IMPROVEMENT. 83 

with " walking in the counsel of the ungodly," and 
" standing in the way of sinners ;" but they set them- 
selves, in many instances, in the " chair of the scorner." 
There were many at that time who prided themselves in 
openly avowing their unbelief in, and scoffing at, the 
doctrines of religion and- the persons of its professors. 
This worst of all nuisances is also completely put down. 
Even the boldest unbeliever does not now venture 
publicly on a profane jest ; and if he has not learnt to 
respect religion, he at least does not openly insult the 
feelings of those who profess it. 

All these gross, undeniable offences, which within 

these forty or fifty years were notoriously and habitually 

indulged in by many among the higher and wealthier 

classes of society, are now so entirely removed, that 

some will hardly believe them to have existed ; and 

I conceive it to be equally certain, that their removal 

has been mainly attributable to the zealous, able, and 

judicious efforts of our excellent divines. About the 

commencement of the period we have been considering, 

although there were many learned and worthy men in 

the Church, yet there was an apathy and lukewarmness 

in regard to Christianity among the people, and a want, 

upon the w T hole, of zeal and fervency, on the part of the 

clergy. Since that time a change in these respects has 

undoubtedly taken place. There has been in some 

degree a revival of the spirit and knowledge of the true 

faith. Men have arisen amongst us of energetic minds 

and splendid talents, who have contributed, as far as 

their exertions have extended, in removing the veil from 

men's hearts, and inducing many who " cared for none 

of these things" to attend to the divine message. The 

effects of their exertions have appeared not merely in 

the improvement of manners which has been noticed, 

but in the more regular attendance on places of worship. 



84 ON THE EFFICACY OF PREACHING 

There were formerly few males of the higher classes who 
frequented the churches, which were either attended by 
women only, or more generally half empty ; now there 
are few of either sex in the higher classes who habitually 
absent themselves from places of worship — and among 
all ranks the regular attendance, good order, and decent 
demeanour of those who attend, must strike every 
observer. 

But although our preachers were greatly more eloquent 
and effective than they are, it is impossible their instruc- 
tions can benefit those who do not hear them. Those 
who do attend and listen, are benefited, and it will not 
be pretended that vice and misery prevail greatly among 
them, or, at least, that they are not diminished by the in- 
fluence of preaching; but the class in which vice and 
misery really prevail, is a class that never enters a church, 
— that has no opportunity of doing so. Our present 
places of worship are far too few in number for the 
accommodation of all classes, and these few are closed 
against the poor by high seat-rents; of course it is the 
lowest and worst class, those who have most need of 
instruction, and who are least inclined to seek it,* who, 
under our present arrangements, are necessarily deprived 
of its benefits. The clergy, seeing how much our popu- 
lation has outgrown the means of instruction, are now 
anxious to supply this deficiency, and notwithstanding 
any opposition that may be made, it is hoped that this 
great desideratum will soon be obtained. After this is 
the case, and after the influence of preaching has been 
brought fully and fairly to bear upon the lowest and most 
degraded class, if it is then found to fail in diminishing 
vice and misery, it will be time enough to speak of the 
inefficiency of preaching. What I maintain, and what 

* " Marry, the immortal part hath need of a physician, but that moves 
not them. Though that be sick, it dies not." 



AS A MEANS OF IMPROVEMENT. 85 

I say is borne out by multiplied facts, is, that it has 
succeeded as far as it has been tried. 

If, then, it be true, that all the mighty empires of the 
old world fell by the force of inherent corruption, and, 
after a short period of prosperity, continued to decline 
until they came to utter ruin, it may be asked, why this 
has not yet been the case with us ? We have seen 
Britain gradually rising, and, amidst many turmoils and 
revolutions, constantly advancing in prosperity and im- 
provement for eighteen hundred years, till we have 
reached a pitch of wealth and refinement equal, per- 
haps, if not surpassing, those of any ancient state. 
Wealth, we have seen in their case, produced luxury, 
and luxury led to vice, and vice to total corruption and 
ruin. Why is not that our case ? How does it happen 
that now, in the midst of all our overflowing wealth, we 
are still confessedly improving, — that the higher and 
middle classes are becoming purer instead of being more 
corrupt, — that we are engaged in an attempt to reform 
all abuses, and that the only contest among our parties 
is, as to which are the best means of perfecting our 
institutions ? 

The answer is, that Christianity has been the cause 
of our preservation. Christianity, taught in a pure and 
effective form, as it has now been taught among us for 
two centuries, rendering familiar to the people the sacred 
and sublime truths of the Gospel, and enforcing by their 
sanction the simple precepts of morality — calling into 
activity, and gratifying all the higher and worthier feel- 
ings of our nature — and calculated, in course of time, 
to strengthen and improve these feelings, not in indivi- 
duals merely, but in the race. Well and truly it has 
been said of the teachers of this divine doctrine, that 
they are the salt of the earth. 

H 



86 VIEWS OF THE FRENCH PHILOSOPHERS 

I have endeavoured to prove, by undeniable facts, 
what this doctrine and these teachers have already done. 
Mr Combe speaks of what Phrenology is to do, and I 
shall be happy to see it realized. In the mean time, I 
beg to remind him that hitherto Phrenology has done 
nothing ; and to recommend to his notice the maxim, 
" Let not him who buckleth on his armour boast as he 
who putteth it off." 



CHAPTER IV 



EXAMINATION OF MR COMBE S VIEWS RESPECTING THE NATURAL LAWS. 

I. General view of the subject. 

The notion of a Natural Law discoverable by man's 
reason, sufficient for the regulation of all his actions, is 
as old as the first speculation on the subject of the human 
faculties. The philosophers of ancient Greece endea- 
voured to discover this law, by following which man 
might attain the greatest possible happiness, or what 
they termed the supreme good. But though many of 
their speculations directed to this end were plausible and 
ingenious, and though they formed the loftiest ideas of 
human virtue, and pretended, by means of it, to be able 
to attain a happiness equal to that of the gods, they 
utterly failed in their attempts to form a scheme of 
practical morality, calculated to effect any improvement 
on the generality of mankind. 

Similar views have been entertained in modern times 
by various writers. In France, during the latter part of 
the last century, they became favourite doctrines with a 



RESPECTING NATURAL LAW. 87 

set of philosophers, whose main object appeared to be, 
to undermine the influence, and supersede the authority 
of revelation. These philosophers revived the old 
speculations on the subject of a natural law, which they 
maintained to be " universal, invariable, demonstrable, 
reasonable, just, pacific, and of itself sufficient." They 
held, that by means of this law, man would be able, by 
his own unassisted means, to attain the highest perfection 
of his nature ; and that, if it was only generally under- 
stood and obeyed, society would be a scene of unalloyed 
happiness, and that vice and misery would for ever 
disappear from the world. 

It is obvious that these doctrines were maintained by 
the writers alluded to, not so much for their own sake, as 
for the sake of certain consequences which were supposed 
to follow from them. The great object was to get rid of 
revelation, and of the law which it proclaims under the 
highest sanctions, — a law too pure, searching, and un- 
compromising, to prove agreeable to the wayward and 
capricious desires of man's sinful nature. They assumed, 
that if a law were discoverable by reason, sufficient for 
the attainment of perfect virtue and perfect happiness, 
and accompanied by motives sufficiently strong to ensure 
its being universally obeyed, there could be no necessity 
for a law being proclaimed by a revelation from Heaven. 
And as the Creator does nothing in vain, and could not 
be supposed to have promulgated a law without necessity, 
it followed that there could be no such thing as a divine 
revelation, and that every thing pretending to be such 
must be founded on imposture. 

It also occurred, that if the laws by which this world 
is governed are such, that perfect justice is done in every 
case, and that perfect happiness is attainable by obedience 
to them in the present life, no reason could be assigned 



88 dr spurzheim's views. 

for the existence of a future life for amending what may 
be amiss in the present. 

Accordingly, the French philosophers who maintained 
the doctrine of a natural law, uniformly and consistently 
rejected all belief in revelation and a future state. These 
views are fully and elaborately set forth in a work sup- 
posed to have been written by Diderot, under the assumed 
name of Mirabaud, entitled, " The System of Nature, 
or the Laws of the Moral and Physical World," and are 
more concisely stated by M. Volney, author of the 
" Ruins of Empires," in a sequel to that performance, 
which he first named the " Catechism of a French 
Citizen," and which was afterwards published in English 
under the title of " The Law of Nature." 

We are warned by high authority to beware of false 
teachers, of whom it is emphatically said, " By their 
fruits ye shall know them;" and if in the present instance 
we apply this sure and infallible test, we can be at no 
loss to form a correct judgment. These works, which 
may be called the Confession of Faith, and Shorter 
Catechism of Infidelity, and others inculcating similar 
principles, with which France was inundated at the 
period referred to, were but too successful in poisoning 
the national mind, and preparing the way for that total 
dissolution of moral and religious principle which took 
place in that country at the time of the Revolution, and 
for the exhibition, unparalleled in the history of the 
world, of the supreme council of a great nation pro- 
claiming, by a solemn decree, that " there is no God," 
and that " death is an eternal sleep." 

Mr Combe states, that his notions on the subject of 
the natural laws were derived from a MS. work of 
Doctor Spurzheim's, with the perusal of which he was 
honoured in 1824 3 and which was afterwards published 



MR combe's views. 89 

under the title of i; A Sketch of the Natural Laws of 
Man." I have no doubt this was the case, but there can 
be as little doubt that Doctor Spurzheira derived his 
notions from Volney, and the other French writer*, 
before alluded to. Doctor Spurzheim's work, like that 
of Volney, is in the form of a catechism : the general 
train of thought in both is the same, and in many cases 
the doctrines stated are identical. There is, however, 
this difference, that Doctor Spurzheim, while he main- 
tains the same opinions as Volney with regard to a 
natural law, does not draw the same conclusions against 
the truth of revelation. In regard to this, his mind 
appears to have been in a kind al state. He does 

not expressly admit the Christian revelation to be true, 
but he refers to its moral precepts " as surpassing ail 
other systems of revealed religion, and as standing the 
scrutiny of reason."^ He seem> to consider that the 
natural laws discoverable by reasc;u and [he precepts of 
pure Christianity, are in harmony one with another ; 
but it is evidently the tendency of his mind to place 
more reliance on the former than on the latter, though 
he seems to entertain the idea that both must concur, in 
order to produce " that general religious reformation, 
whose necessity for the well being of man is -o evident." 
Such is the general scope of Doctor Spurzheim's 
work : and although, in adopting the doctrine of the 
French writer: with regard to the natural laws, he d< 
in fact, admit that which forms the foundation of all their 
infidel rea^ouiuus. I have no doubt thru he was since] e in 
believing that he had kept clear of objectionable matter, 
that no one, whether Christian or not, could find 
fault with his mode of treating the subject It must be 
quite obvious, however, that if the reasoning of the 
French writers were correct, and if the consequences 
* Pace 196. 

h-2 



90 GENERAL OBJECTION 

which they deduce follow legitimately from their pre- 
mises, it can make no difference that these consequences 
are not formally stated in so many words, and that if we 
admit the premises, we cannot consistently reject the 
conclusion. 

The general views maintained by Mr Combe on this 
subject, are as follows: — "First, That all substances 
and beings have received a definite natural constitution ; 
secondly, That every mode of action which is said to 
take place according to a natural law, is inherent in the 
constitution of the substance or being ; and thirdly, That 
the mode of action described is universal and invariable 
wherever and whenever the substances or beings are 
found in the same condition." 

He then goes on to say, that intelligent beings are 
capable of observing nature, and of modifying their 
actions. By means of their faculties, the laws impressed 
by the Creator on physical substances become known to 
them; and when perceived, constitute laics to them by 
which to regulate their conduct. For example, it is a 
physical law, that boiling water destroys the muscular and 
nervous systems of man. This is the result purely of 
the constitution of the body, and of the relation between 
it and heat ; and man cannot alter or suspend the law. 
But whenever the relation, and the consequences of dis- 
regarding it, are perceived, the mind is prompted to 
avoid infringement, in order to avoid the torture attached 
by the Creator to the decomposition of the human body 
by heat. 

Mr Combe then goes on to state more in detail, the 
nature of those different laws which it is the duty of 
man to discover and obey. These, as far as they are yet 
known, he divides into three great classes, namely, 1st, 
the physical laws, embracing all the phenomena of mere 
matter; 2d, the organic laws, comprehending the 



TO THE FOREGOING VIEWS. 91 

phenomena connected with the production, health, 
growth, decay, and death of vegetables and animals; 
and lastly, the moral and intellectual laws, the lower 
intellectual being common to man with some of the 
lower animals, the higher intellectual and moral laws 
being peculiar to man. 

Before going farther, I would here observe, that 
throughout the whole of the statements respecting the 
natural laws, either by Diderot, Volney, Doctor Spur- 
zheim, or Mr Combe, there are two things included 
under one name, which are perfectly distinct and sepa- 
rate from each other. In the first place, there are the 
laws which result from the constitution of natural objects, 
and which regulate their mutual action on one another, 
such as the laws of the resistance, momentum, elasticity, 
&c. of solids, the laws of gravitation, the laws of the 
pressure of fluids, the laws of vegetation, and so on. 
Considered in this sense, every object and being in the 
world has its laws according to which it acts or is acted 
upon. These are the laws of nature referred to by 
Montesquieu, Blackstone, Erskine, and other writers 
quoted by Mr Combe in his appendix, and as to which 
there is no difference of opinion. These, however, are 
totally distinct from the " Law of Nature," or " Natural 
Laws," spoken of by Mr Combe and those from whom 
he has borrowed his system ; these do not mean the laws 
of the constitution of things, but those rules which the 
intellect of man is able to deduce for the regulation of his 
own conduct, by means of his knowledge of those laws 
which govern the phenomena of nature. These last are 
perfectly distinct from the former, and it is a monstrous 
confusion of ideas to mix them up together. 

These two notions, however, the laws of the constitu- 
tion of things, and the laws of human conduct, are inva- 
riably confounded together by these writers. Thus, 
Volney, after mentioning certain general facts or laws of 



92 bishop butler's views 

the constitution of natural objects, and stating that these 
form so many positive commands to which we are bound 
to pay attention, adds, that it has been agreed " to 
assemble together the different ideas and express them by 
a single word, and call them collectively the law of 
nature." And in like manner Mr Combe expressly 
states, that "a law of nature means the established mode 
in which the actions and phenomena of any creature 
exhibit themselves, and the obligation thereby imposed 
on intelligent beings to attend to it." 

In consequence of this mixing up of different* and 
even opposite ideas under one name, we find an inextri- 
cable confusion running through the whole speculations 
of Mr Combe, Volney, &c. respecting the natural laws, 
so that we never know when they are speaking of the 
laws of natural phenomena, and when they are referring 
to the rules of human conduct. It is also important to 
notice, that they take advantage of this confusion to 
introduce another grand fallacy into their statements. 
This consists in attributing to the whole of what they 
include under the name of natural laws those characters 
of certainty, universality, invariability, &c. which only 
belong to one of these divisions. Every one will admit 
that the laws which regulate natural phenomena are 
" universal, invariable, demonstrable, reasonable, and 
of themselves sufficient" for all the purposes for which 
they were established ; but it is a very different thing to 
say that this is the case with regard to any rules which 
the intellect of man has ever been able, or may ever be 
able, to deduce from his knowledge of these, for the 
regulation of his own conduct. This supposes that the 
intellect of man is perfect, which we know, in his pre- 
sent state, is not the case ; that we have discovered all 
the laws which regulate the phenomena of natural 
objects, which we know is not the case ; and lastly, 



OF A DIVINE GOVERNMENT. 93 

that we have discovered all the rules of conduct 
deducible from that knowledge, which Mr Combe 
himself admits will not be the case for an immense 
series of years. 

Mr Combe seems to be anxious not to have it sup- 
posed that he has derived his views entirely from the 
French philosophers, and he thinks he is able to bring 
to his support the high authority of Bishop Butler. 
This excellent writer, in his work on the Analogy of 
Religion, in maintaining the probability of a future state 
of rewards and punishments, uses the argument, that 
even in the present life, and in the natural world, 
certain actions are attended or followed by pleasing, 
and others by painful sensations, analogous to rewards 
and punishments, so that we are even here in a certain 
sense under a system of divine government. The 
passage is this : " Now, from this general observation, 
obvious to every one, that God has given us to under- 
stand he has appointed satisfaction and delight to be the 
consequence of our acting in one manner, and pain 
and uneasiness of our acting in another, and of our 
not acting at all ; and that we find the consequences 
which we viere beforehand informed of uniformly to 
follow ; we may learn that we are at present actually 
under his government in the strictest and most proper 
sense, in such a sense as he rewards and punishes us 
for our actions. An Author of Nature being supposed, 
it is not so much a deduction of reason as a lesson of 
experience, that we are thus under his government, under 
his government in the same sense as we are under the 
government of civil magistrates ; because, annexing plea- 
sure to some actions, and pain to others, in our power 
to do or forbear, and giving notice of this appointment 
beforehand, is the proper formal notion of government. 
Whether the pleasure or pain which thus follows upon 



94 bishop butler's views 

our behaviour be owing to the Author of Nature acting 
upon us every moment that we feel it, or to his having 
at once contrived and executed his own part in the 
plan of the world, makes no alteration as to the matter 
before us ; for if civil magistrates could make the sanc- 
tions of their laws take place without interposing at all 
after they had passed them — without a trial, and the 
formalities of an execution — if they were able, to make 
their laws execute themselves, or every offender to exe- 
cute them upon himself — we should be just in the same 
sense under their government then as we are now, but 
in a much higher degree, and more perfect manner." 
Then follows the passage which Mr Combe has adopted 
as the motto of his book : " Vain is the ridicule with 
which one foresees some persons will divert themselves, 
upon finding lesser pains considered as instances of divine 
punishment. There is no possibility of answering or 
evading the general thing here intended, without denying 
all final causes, for final causes being admitted, the plea- 
sures and pains now mentioned must be admitted too as 
instances of them ; and if they are — if God annexes 
delight to some actions, and uneasiness to others, with 
an apparent design to induce us to act so and so, then he 
not only dispenses happiness and misery, but also rewards 
and punishes actions. If, for example, the pain which 
we feel upon doing what tends to the destruction of our 
bodies, suppose upon too near approaches to fire, or 
upon wounding ourselves, be appointed by the Author 
of Nature to prevent our doing what thus tends to our 
destruction, this is altogether as much an instance of his 
punishing our actions, and consequently of our being 
under his government, as declaring bv a voice from 
heaven, that if we acted so, he would inflict such pain 
upon us, and inflicting it whether it be greater or less." 
I have quoted the w T hole of the above passage, as Mr 



OF A DIVINE GOVERNMENT. 95 

Combe seems to lay much stress upon one part of it, 
though I think it will be evident that it affords no support 
to his system. In the first place, the " general thing in'- 
tended" by Butler, is an analogical argument drawn from 
circumstances connected with our present state of exis- 
tence, and rendering it probable that something similar 
may take place in a future state. This argument Mr Combe 
sets aside altogether, as what he has nothing to do with, 
and confines himself entirely to the situation of man in 
the present world. In regard to this last, Bishop Butler 
only refers to the cases (of which he gives an instance in 
the effect of fire upon our bodies) where the law is well 
known to all, and where it forces itself upon our notice 
in such a way that none can plead ignorance. He 
makes it particularly evident, that it is only these cases 
he refers to, as he states over and over again, that the 
pleasures or pains annexed to our actions, which we are 
beforehand informed of are those which make us feel 
that we are under a government. These were quite 
sufficient for Bishop Butler's purpose, which was to shew, 
that as in certain cases we are rewarded and punished 
for our actions here, there is nothing incredible in sup- 
posing that there may be rewards and punishments in a 
future state. But certainly neither here nor anywhere 
else does Bishop Butler maintain, either that the arrange- 
ments of the present world amount to a perfect system 
of divine government, or that a perfect and sufficient 
rule of conduct either has been, or is ever likely to be, 
deduced by man's intellect, from a study of the laws of 
nature, and the constitution of things. He has expressly 
stated the contrary of both these propositions. 

First, in reference to the divine government, he has 
the following passage : "But it is particularly to be 
observed, that the divine government which we expe- 
rience ourselves under in the present state, taken alone, 



96 

is allowed not to be the perfection of moral government ; 
and yet this by no means hinders, but that there may 
be somewhat, be it more or less, truly moral in it. A 
righteous government may plainly enough appear to be 
carried on to some degree ; enough to give us the appre- 
hension that it shall be completed, or carried on to that 
degree of perfection which religion teaches us it shall ; 
but which cannot appear till much more of the divine 
administration be seen, than can in the present life*" 
Again, on the subject of a natural law, and the likelihood 
of its being discovered so as to serve as a sufficient rule 
of conduct, I may refer to what follows. " Some per- 
sons, upon pretence of the sufficiency of the light of 
nature, avowedly reject all revelation, as in its very 
notion incredible, and what must be fictitious. And, 
indeed, it is certain, no revelation would have been 
given, had the light of nature been sufficient in such a 
sense as to render one not wanting and useless. But no 
man 9 in seriousness and simplicity of mind, can possibly 
think it so, who considers the state of religion in the 
heathen world, before revelation, and its present state 
in those places which have borrowed no light from it ; 
particularly the doubtfulness of some of the greatest 
men concerning things of the utmost importance, as 
well as the natural inattention and ignorance of man- 
kind in general. It is impossible to say, who would 
have been able to have reasoned out that whole system, 
which we call natural religion, in its genuine simplicity, 
clear of superstition ; but there is certainly no ground 
to affirm that the generality could. If they could, there 
is no sort of probability that they would." 

From the above, it appears that the system of Bishop 
Butler bears nearly the same relation to the speculations 
of Mr Combe, that a circle does to a straight line : they 
only touch at a single point, but do not and never can 



QUITE OPPOSITE TO MR COMBE'S. 97 

coincide in the smallest divisible part of their extent. 
Bishop Butler's argument, like the ladder seen in the 
vision of the patriarch, reaches from earth to heaven. 
Mr Combe, on the contrary, keeps grovelling on the 
earth. From that alone his views are derived, and in 
that they have their termination. Nothing, therefore, 
-can possibly be more opposite than the views of Bishop 
Butler and those of Mr Combe. 

Butler, as we have seen, refers to certain cases as in- 
stances of reward and punishment, where the law which 
is spoken of is previously known, and it is obviously in 
such cases only where the pleasures or pains annexed to 
actions, can properly be termed rewards or punishments. 
It is of the essence of reward and punishment, that they 
follow as the consequence of obedience or disobedience 
of a law previously made known, and have reference to 
the state of mind of the party who is to be rewarded or 
punished. It is the intention or disposition of the mind, 
and not the mere act of the body, that is ever considered 
as obedience or disobedience, or thought worthy, in a 
moral sense, of either reward or punishment. If in any 
case we happen to act in conformity to a law of which 
we are ignorant, or which we had no intention to obey, 
and in consequence experience a certain pleasure, it is 
absurd to call this a reward : it is an accidental gratifica- 
tion, and nothing more. On the other hand, if we happen 
to transgress a law not previously made known to us, and 
in consequence are made to smTer pain which we did not 
and could not foresee, this is never called & punishment, 
but a misfortune. Mr Combe refers to the cases of 
human laws, where a maxim has been adopted that no 
one is to be excused on account of ignorance; but this 
maxim has arisen only from the necessary imperfection 
of all human institutions, and cannot be compared to 

i 



98 CASE OF THE BEE. 

any thing connected with the divine government of the 
world. 

It may here be granted, for the sake of argument, 
that if all the qualities of objects, and laws of their 
operation, and all the consequences of our own actions, 
so far as our welfare is concerned, had been known to 
us by intuition, or had been announced to us in such a 
way as not to be misunderstood, this might perhaps 
have constituted a natural law sufficient for our guidance, 
and that there might in that case have been no occasion 
for any other, so far, at least, as the present world is 
concerned. 

But this is not the situation in which we stand. 
According to Mr Combe's doctrine, we are sent into the 
world not to obey a law of which notice has been given to 
us beforehand, which Bishop Butler says is the " proper 
formal notion of government; " but to obey laws of which 
all mankind have been, from the beginning of the world, 
and are at this moment, in a great measure ignorant ; 
which the inquiries of six thousand years have not 
enabled them to discover, and which may not be dis- 
covered for thousands of years to come. This is Mr 
Combe's own statement. He says, (p. 9, col. 1,) " It is 
impossible, in the present state of knowledge, to elucidate 
all these laws : numberless years may elapse before they 
shall be discovered^ What sort of a government is this, 
where we are commanded to obey an unknown law, and 
which punishes us for not obeying it ? It is about as 
reasonable as the command of the frantic Nebuchad- 
nezzar, who ordered his soothsayers and wise men to be 
put to death, because they could not tell him his dream, 
and the interpretation thereof. 

Mr Combe has here favoured us with a speculation, 
the drift of which is to shew, that man is happier in having 



CASE OF THE BEE. 99 

his knowledge to seek, than if he had understood even- 
thing by intuition. He instances the case of the bee, and 
says, that if man had been gifted with intuitive know- 
ledge of every object in nature, he would be in the con- 
dition of the bee if his combs had been filled with honey 
without the need of any exertion on his part ; and that 
he is happier in being enabled to range about the hills 
and meadows, and to gather honey from every opening 
flower. It may be observed, that the very supposition 
that a creature should possess intuitive knowledge of 
every object in nature is a manifest absurdity. Intuitive 
knowledge of every object in nature would be omniscience, 
and can only belong to the Author of Nature by whom 
these objects were formed. What we mean by intuitive 
knowledge as applied to a creature, is a knowledge, either 
born with him, or acquired with the earliest exertion of 
his faculties, of those objects which lie within his own 
sphere, or which are in any way connected with, or con- 
ducive to his welfare. Taking the matter in this view, 
the parallel of the bee does not hold. Man, if gifted 
with this sort of knowledge, would be exactly in the 
condition of the bee as it now exists ; for the bee has 
intuitive knowledge of all the flowers and plants capable 
of yielding honey ; and if knowledge is good and desi- 
rable of itself — if the pleasure of knowing does not 
entirely evaporate in the attainment — if it leads to any 
useful end, and enables us to procure the means of 
increasing our happiness, — then the possession of such 
knowledge intuitively must be the most desirable of all 
things, as it would enable us to avoid every thing that 
could give us pain, and to obtain every thing that could 
give us pleasure. The present condition of man, on the 
other hand, if Mr Combe's account of it be the true one, 
seems to resemble what the condition of the bee would 
have been, had it been sent into the fields to gather 



100 PARADOXICAL STATEMENT 

honey, without any knowledge of the flowers from 
which honey was to be gathered, so that it should make 
innumerable blunders before it discovered what were the 
plants that afforded what it sought. On the contrary, it 
appears to me. that nature has not acted to man such a 
step-dame's part, but has endowed him with such feelings 
and propensities as in general lead him to that which is 
calculated to afford him a reasonable degree of happiness, 
without its being necessary to resort to systems of philo- 
sophy, which not one in a thousand has opportunity to 
study, or capacity to comprehend ; or to natural laics, 
which are to be discovered some hundred thousand 
years hence ! 

There is altogether something most extraordinarv in 
the view which Mr Combe takes of the situation in 
which man has been placed in this world. Holding, as 
he does, that all the evils we suiter arise from ignorance, 
nothing but the spirit of paradox could give rise to the 
notion, that the happiness of man has been better pro- 
vided for by sending him into the world in a state of 
entire ignorance, than if he had been furnished with 
intuitive knowledge of every thing on which his hap- 
piness depends. Mr Combe maintains, that happiness 
depends on the activity of the faculties : but is it true 
that the activity of the faculties is best promoted by 
ignorance ? Is it not, on the contrary, the case, that the 
most ignorant of mankind are invariably the most indo- 
lent, and the least inclined to exert their faculties : while 
the intelligent are diligent and industrious, and those who 
know most possess at once the highest motives to be active, 
and the most extended sphere of activity. The absur- 
dity of the supposition will appear in its true light, when 
we consider, that the intuitive knowledge supposed neces- 
sarily includes an intuitive knowledge of the advantages 
to be derived from exercising the faculties, and of all that 



OF THE BENEFITS OF IGNORANCE. 101 

is necessary for bringing our whole powers, physical and 
mental, into their most favourable state of action. It 
would be strange, indeed, if the possession of this know- 
ledge were to incapacitate us from using it, and if we 
were to become indolent from having too clear a view of 
the infinite advantages and pleasures of activity. 

Nothing but suffering will rouse the activity, or sub- 
due the indolence of savages ; but the activity so excited 
does not seem with them to lead to any improvement. If 
suffering would effect this desirable end, they ought to 
improve rapidly, for of suffering, by all accounts, they 
have enough. But from all that we know of savages, 
we have no reason to think that they ever improve, or 
that they are in any respect in a progressive state. 

We have seen, that, in his introductory chapter, Mr 
Combe, in order to get rid of the Fall, and the doctrine 
of the corruption of human nature, represents man as 
originally introduced into the world in a state little 
superior to the brutes, " a ferocious, sensual, and super- 
stitious savage ;" and that he has ever since been in a 
state of slow and progressive improvement. He now 
gives us a different view of the subject, and one which 
seems, if possible, still more fraught with absurdity. 
" It is interesting to observe," he says, " that although 
the first pair of the human race had been created with 
powerful and well balanced faculties, but of the same 
nature as at present — if they were not also intuitively 
inspired with knowledge of the whole creation, and its 
relations, their first movements as individuals would have 
been retrograde ; that is, as individuals, they would, 
through pure want of information, have infringed many 
natural laws, and suffered evil, while, as parts of the race, 
they would have been decidedly advancing ; for every 
pang thus suffered would have led them to a new step 
in knowledge, and prompted them to advance towards 

i 2 



10*2 NEW VIEW OF THE CONDITION" OF MAN. 

a much higher condition than that which they at first 
occupied." 

Here we have a totally new theory offered of the 
original condition of our race. According to the first 
view, which may be called the Yahoo theory, there could 
be no Fall, and no corruption of our nature,, as from a 
state so low it was impossible to descend lower, and that 
nature could not be corrupted which was created in a 
state of brutal ignorance, and savage ferocity. But by 
the supposition now made, that man was created at first 
with all his present powers in a perfect state, Mr Combe, 
although he rejects the doctrine of the Fall and corrup- 
tion of our nature, as held by divines, has contrived to 
furnish us with a new species of Fall of his own. We 
have now not one system of progression, by which the 
race is carried on from its original savage condition to 
the highest state of improvement : but we have a double 
progression upwards and downwards at the same time, 
every step upward in knowledge being purchased by 
another step downward in suffering. We have a race, 
consisting of two individuals, improving by means of 
their own degradation, and advancing to wisdom and 
virtue by the transgression of the whole of their Creator's 
laws. 

Mr Combe's doctrine, then, is, that pain, disease, 
suffering, and death, are all beneficial arrangements, 
intended by God for no other purpose, but to teach us 
the natural laws, or our duty. These evils, according 
to him, are a part and portion of the means of promoting 
and ensuring our obedience to the physical, organic, and 
moral laws ordained for the regulation of the world, and 
man was placed in this world in a state of entire igno- 
rance of these laws, in order that by pain and suffering 
he might be brought to discover and obey them. It is 
a necessary consequence from this doctine, that he who 



TRAXSSGRESION AND EVIL NECESSARY. 103 

has transgressed the most will be the best instructed. 
He has been taught in the best school, experience. 
Therefore the most vicious of mankind ought to be 
the wisest, and those who have committed the greatest 
crimes ought to become in the end the most virtuous 
of men. 

Man, according to Mr Combe, even as he proceeded 
from the hands of his Creator, was a fool, whom expe- 
rience alone could teach ; the greater the experience, the 
greater the wisdom, and wisdom must be taught by folly, 
and virtue by vice. We have heard of ignorance being 
the mother of devotion ; it now appears that it is also 
the mother of knowledge. According to this view, evil 
is necessary by the very constitution of our nature, and 
this, not as a punishment inflicted by Infinite Justice, on 
account of the wilful transyression of a known law, but as 
the result of a state which made transgression necessary, 
and suffering inevitable. Man being placed by his 
Creator, from the very first, in a state of entire ignorance 
of his will, and with capacities fitted only by slow and 
difficult steps, and after the endurance of many a pang 
to discover it, it was impossible for him not to err, and 
suffering and sin is thus made to form, not an accidental, 
but an essential part of that constitution of things under 
which he was placed. God is thus made directly the 
author of evil, and is represented as having, by the 
arrangements of creation, laid man under the necessity 
of transgressing his will, denving him all means of know- 
ing that will, except that of the suffering following upon 
such transgression, and thus compelling him to do evil, 
that good may come. Is it possible to reconcile such a 
view of things with the character of an all powerful, all 
wise, all just, and all benevolent Creator ? 

In regard to these natural laws, it is certainly not too 
much to call upon those who allege their existence to 



104 INFINITE EXTENT 

prove their own case ; and not merely to prove that the 
laws exist, but that it is possible for man to discover 
them so as to attain a perfect rule of conduct. But it has 
not been, and we are safe in saying it cannot be, proved 
that man in his present state is able to discover the whole 
laws, either of his own constitution, or of the constitution 
of external objects. That he ever shall discover them 
by the unaided exertion of his own faculties, is a mere 
assumption, ventured without proof, contrary to all expe- 
rience, and destitute of all probability. And when we 
consider what is included in the words, " all the natural 
laws," the whole nature, constitution, qualities, and 
modes of operation of every object and every being, 
including man himself — of every thing within us and 
without us — of every thing in the heaven above, and 
on the earth beneath, and in the waters under the earth 
— of every thing, in short, in the creation of God, and 
the relations existing among all of them — that it, in fact, 
amounts to nothing short of omniscience, — does not the 
assumption strike us as one of prodigious arrogance and 
absurdity ? 

That this is by no means an exaggeration or over- 
statement of the case, will be evident on referring to 
Mr Combe's own exposition of the number and com- 
plexity of those laws, which he says it is our duty to 
study and obey. " Every natural object," he says, " has 
received a definite constitution, in virtue of which it acts 
in a particular way. There must, therefore, be as many 
natural laics, as there are distinct modes of action of 
substances and beings viewed by themselves. But sub- 
stances and beings stand in certain relations to each 
other, and modify each other's action in an established 
and definite manner, according to that relationship ; 
altitude, for instance, modifies the effect of heat upon 
water. There must, therefore, be as many laws of 



OF THE NATURAL LAWS. 105 

nature as there are relations between different substances 
and beings" 

If any one, on reading the above, is not at once 
satisfied that the knowledge here supposed is unat- 
tainable by man in his present state, I despair of his 
ever being convinced of this by reasoning. I may, 
however, state a few considerations. 

The laws of nature appear to our limited faculties to 
be infinite. Even the objects, or rather the classes, 
genera, and species of objects in the creation are 
infinite with respect to us, at least we have never 
yet arrived at a complete enumeration of them, and 
each of these possesses a definite constitution varying 
in every species, the laws of which are also infinitely 
various. The portion of these that has been hitherto 
explored, is small indeed in comparison of their whole 
extent, and yet that little is known imperfectly, and 
known comparatively to few. Of many of the laws of 
our own nature we are yet profoundly ignorant. Phre- 
nology has disclosed to us some new truths, and has 
enabled us to distinguish some of the mental faculties, 
and to give them names, but that is all that can be 
said. Of the true nature and functions of many of 
these faculties — of the real extent and mode of their 
operation — of what they really are competent to do, 
and what they cannot do, — w r e are nearly as ignorant 
as ever. The relations between us and the various 
objects of creation, and the relations of these among 
one another, are also infinitely various; and, considering 
the infinitude of objects comprehended in these relations, 
must surpass the utmost stretch of our imaginations to 
conceive. If the simple powders which exist in nature 
are in themselves too vast for our comprehension, what 
shall we say to the combinations of these, which, accor- 
ding to the rule of calculation in such cases, must 



106 LIMITED NATURE 

necessarily amount to an infinity of infinities, the pro- 
duct of one infinite number multiplied by another ! 

The very kind of our knowledge is defective, as well 
as its degree. It has already been observed, that we are 
only able to perceive certain definite relations of things, 
not the things themselves. We only see the succession 
of events, not the causes by which these successions are 
produced. It is a maxim in metaphysics, that we know 
nothing of efficient causes, beyond the mere phenomenon 
of constant and invariable sequence. If, then, we neither 
know the intimate nature of any one object, nor the effi- 
cient cause of any one event, where can we find adequate 
terms to express our amazement at that extreme folly 
which can induce any one to suppose that we are able 
to develope the entire phenomena of the universe ? 

From the nature of the human faculties, such a 
knowledge must have been unattainable by man even in 
his original state of perfection, possessing, as we must 
suppose, no other faculties than those which he has at 
present. But we know, and have proved, that man has 
grievously degenerated from his original perfection. His 
religious faculties have degenerated, so that he can no 
longer discern or appreciate as he ought the character 
and perfections of the Creator. His moral faculties are 
perverted and depraved, so that he can no longer feel or 
act as he ought towards his fellow-men. His perceptive 
powers are darkened, and his reflective and reasoning 
powers are rendered sluggish and inactive, so that he 
can no longer discern objects in their true colours, or 
appreciate justly their true character and value ; and in 
most cases he prefers the delusive colouring of his own 
imagination to the pure and unmingled light of heavenly 
truth. 

I have endeavoured to argue against the supposition 
of our being able to discover, and to obey, all the natural 



OF THE HUMAN FACULTIES. 107 

laws, by shewing its impossibility. But I am not obliged 
to take this ground. They who allege that it is possible, 
are bound to prove their own case. They will find that 
all their attempts to do this are vain. All experience is 
against the supposition. No man has ever attained a 
perfect knowledge of all the laws that ought to regulate 
his conduct — nor has any one individual of the race ever 
been able to act up even to the imperfect measure of 
the knowledge he possessed. The wisest men are always 
the first to acknowledge their own ignorance ; the best 
men are the most prone to lament the multitude of their 
imperfections and errors. Although one man should 
attain to, we shall not say perfection, but a very near 
approach to it, and be able to discover all, or nearly all, 
the natural laws, and attain to that pitch of constancy 
and virtue as to conform his conduct to them in every 
respect, what would this signify to the world, unless all 
the rest of mankind could attain the same degrees of 
knowledge and virtue ? 

What use, then, can it serve to hold out expectations 
of our attaining, by human means, a knowledge so vast 
and multifarious — a knowledge of all the Creator's works, 
and all the relations subsisting among them ? Such a 
knowledge can belong only to the Creator himself; and 
the idea of it looks almost like a renewal of the first 
temptation, — a promise that we shall be as gods, knowing 
good and evil. 

The true state of the case is this : We find ourselves 
here in a world where certain arrangements have been 
made for our use and convenience by the bountiful and 
all-wise Creator. It is for our interest to study these 
arrangements, and to accommodate our conduct to them, 
as far as we know them ; and in doing so, we obey — not 
those laws of nature, physical and organic — but the 
laws of prudence and good sense, arising from a due use 



108 HOW FAR THE NATURAL LAWS 

of our moral and intellectual faculties. Had Mr Combe 
satisfied himself with this plain unambitious doctrine, 
he would have commanded universal assent. Had he 
attempted less, he would have effected more. 

Mr Combe knows the extreme ignorance and pre- 
judice which prevail in the world. The mode of 
enlightening ignorance is by giving short lessons, and 
communicating instruction by little at a time. " They 
who do teach young babes, do it by gentle means and 
easy tasks." Instead of this, he has thrust upon us at 
once a system, of which it is evident that he himself 
neither knows the length nor the breadth, and which in 
truth it transcends the human faculties to comprehend. 
Instead of laying upon us a burden suited to our 
strength, he has pointed out to us a huge mountain, and 
ordered us to remove it and cast it into the sea. 
Indeed, it may be fairly stated, without any figure, as a 
literal truth, that if Mr Combe had proposed to the 
inhabitants of this country to level the Grampians, and 
to throw the materials into the German Ocean, this 
would have been a feasible, moderate, and easy task, 
and one likely to be accomplished, in comparison with 
that which he would have us to undertake. It would 
have been a measureable task, and the time and means 
required for its accomplishment could be exactly calcu- 
lated ; but the task he has proposed is one which far 
transcends the powers of all human calculation. 

No one will venture to deny, that some of the arrange- 
ments of the Creator are so obvious as to be understood 
by all, and that, when they are fully understood and 
explained, it becomes our interest and duty to conform 
to them, and we only obey the laws of prudence in doing 
so ; and many of them are so imperative, that we must 
do so if we would live in the world. There is no harm 
whatever in representing these necessities of our nature 



CAN BE OBEYED. 109 

under the name of laws — natural laws, if you will — 
which it is our interest and our duty to obey. Some of 
these are pointed out by Dr Spurzheim and Mr Combe, 
and instances may be given of the following : — 

The law of cleanliness, which is not only conducive 
to decency and propriety of personal appearance, but 
eminently conducive to the preservation of health. 

The law of temperance in the use of food. 

The law of sobriety, or moderation in the use of 
stimulating liquors. 

The laws of exercise, as necessary for preserving both 
the bodily and mental organs in a proper state. 

These, and a variety of other rules for preserving the 
health, are exceedingly useful, and it is highly important 
that they should be duly explained and enforced. 

But even as to these, Mr Combe begins at the wrong 
end, if he supposes that any one will ever be induced to 
obey these laws, unless he is first taught to obey a law of 
a higher nature. Who are they that attend most care- 
fully to the laws I have mentioned — the very lowest 
of any that can be looked upon as rules of conduct, 
and which merely have reference to the body ? Who 
are in general the most cleanly, temperate, sober, indus- 
trious, and regular in all their actions and occupations ? 
Is it they who cheat, lie, steal, murder, and bear false 
witness ? Is it thev who live, though not altogether in 
unbelief, in the habitual disregard of a God, contempt 
of His word, and neglect of His ordinances, who take 
His name in vain, who profane His Sabbaths, and 
despise His commandments ? 

Most assuredly not. They who are most thoroughly 
imbued with a knowledge of moral and religious truth, 
are also in general those who are most attentive to pre- 
serve themselves from physical contamination. Those 
who are most impressed with the importance of the 

K 



110 WHO ARE 3IOST LIKELY TO OBEY 

weightier matters of the law, — justice, mercy, and truth, 

— are also most attentive to the smaller observances of 
sobriety, order, and regularity, in all their habits of life. 

The tree is known by its fruits, and no man can 
gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles. It is in vain 
to attempt to improve the plant by pruning its diseased 
branches, and removing gangrenous excrescences from 
its extremities, if it is all the time rotten at the root, and 
in the trunk from which the branches arise. These are 
the dispositions of the heart, those faculties the proper 
state and direction of which constitute us religious and 
morjl beings. Unless we reform these, we do nothing : 
we only expel one evil to give place to another. 

Nothing is able to effect this reformation short of 
spiritual influence-. If these are properly applied for, 
and properly cherished, every thing else will follow in 
due conr»e. If the mind is purified from deceitful 
vanities and sinful de-ires, it will seek to manifest its 
inward purity by an outward behaviour conforming to 
it. No man who is really impressed with a full sense of 
his dutv to God, will be filthy, indolent, luxurious, 
gluttonous, a wine-bibber, and a despi^er of outward 
decency. 

This is the order of proceeding in which any real 
good is to be effected, and this order is clearly pointed 
out in the passage formerly quoted. " Take no thought 
for your life, what ye shall eat, nor for the body, what 
ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the 
body than raiment ? Seek ye first the kingdom of God 
and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added 
unto your 

Although this affords a different, aud I think a more 
accurate view of the situation of men in this world, and 
of the true means of improving his character and con- 
dition, than that taken bv Mr Combe, the result, as fa 



THE NATURAL LAWS. Ill 

as the practical application of our faculties is concerned., 
will be nearly the same. All that has been said affords 
no objection whatever, but the contrary, to our pursuing 
the study of natural science as far as we can. We have 
every inducement to do so, without adopting any fantas- 
tic views of attainments in knowledge and improvements 
in the condition of our race, of which, in our present 
state, we can form no distinct conception. Instead of the 
infinitude of petty laws and minor regulations, which, 
according to Mr Combe, we are called upon to discover 
and obey, there is, according to this view, one law only 
applicable to this subject, namely, that delivered to us by 
our great teacher, " Occupy till I come." The Creator 
has bestowed on us faculties, and most assuredly he did 
not intend that they should lie idle; on the contrary, he 
has expressly condemned those who do not put them to 
use, and who hide their talent in a napkin : all which 
clearly points it out to be our interest and our duty, as 
well as one of our highest pleasures, to exert our faculties 
in the discovery of truth, and to employ the knowledge 
we may thus acquire in the promotion of useful ends. 

Man will doubtless fulfil his destiny, and attain what- 
ever heights of science lie within the reach of his facul- 
ties ; but this consummation will not be hastened by 
commencing his career with extravagant expectations. 
In the road to science, as well as in other pursuits, 
modesty and humility are the true guides to eminence, 
and proud and high imaginations are the sure fore- 
runners of a fail ; or, as the same remark has been 
beautifully expressed by Lord Bacon, " It is no less true 
in this kingdom of knowledge, than in God's kingdom 
of heaven, that no one shall enter in, except he become 
first as a little child." 



112 SUPERIOR AUTHORITY OF 



II. — On the Principles stated by Mr Combe as affording a Key to 
the Divine Government. 



It has been stated, that Mr Combe divides the natural 
laws into three great classes, — physical, organic, and 
moral. I have stated, that there are properly only two 
kinds of laws, — the laws of the constitution of things, 
and the laws of human conduct. The physical and 
organic laws belong to the former of these divisions, the 
moral law to the latter. 

Properly speaking, we cannot be said to obey or dis- 
obey the physical and organic laws. They are matter 
of observation and knowledge — when we know them, we 
may adapt our conduct to them ; they are matters of 
order and arrangement — when aware of them, we may 
meet them by counter arrangements. 

The moral law is different. It is not matter of 
observation and reasoning, but of feeling and conscious- 
ness. It speaks to us as with a voice from Heaven, 
prompting us to do this, and warning us to refrain from 
that. 

When we act in conformity to the physical and organic 
laws, (the laws of things without us,) we do so from 
considerations of prudence, from knowing the convenient 
or inconvenient consequences which follow from their 
operations. But our moral feelings tell us that certain 
actions are right and others wrong, independent of all 
consequences. To the\ first we conform merely; it is 
the latter only we can be said to obey. 

These are not mere verbal distinctions ; they will be 
found to have important applications, when we come 
to consider the great principle which Mr Combe has 
announced, and which he considers to afford a full 



THE MORAL LAW. 1 IS 

explanation of the divine government, namely, that the 
above mentioned laws are independent of each other. 

The importance which Mr Combe attaches to this 
principle, will appear by the solemn manner in which 
he announces it. He says, p. 6. col. 1, " I have brought 
into view, and endeavoured to substantiate and apply a 
doctrine, which, as far as I have been able to discover, 
is the key to the true theory of the divine government of 
the world, but which has not hitherto been duly appre- 
ciated, — namely, the independent existence and 

OPERATION OF THE NATURAL LAWS OF CREATION." 

It is not very easy to see how this principle is to 
explain the whole system of the divine government, even 
granting it to be true to the utmost extent. 

It is quite true, that in a certain sense the different 
sets of laws alluded to are independent of each other. 
Nobody imagines that there is any direct connection 
between the laws of gravitation or hydrostatics, and 
those of benevolence or justice. But this goes very 
little way in explaining the system of the divine govern- 
ment. There are other points of which Mr Combe 
takes no notice, but which are indispensable towards a 
true view of the matter. He has said nothing, here at 
least, of the superior authority and obligation of the 
moral law. This requires to be obeyed without evasion, 
and nothing can excuse or justify its infringement. 
With regard to the laws of physical existence, prudence 
no doubt requires that we should attend to them in 
order to avoid unpleasant consequences : but that is all. 
There is nothing to prevent our evading or avoiding 
their operation, or counteracting one of them by another, 
provided we can find the means to do so. In fact, the 
principal use of our studying these laws is to enable us 
to evade them, and to render their operation of none 
effect, whenever it is likely to hurt us. We study them 

k2 



114 CASES IN WHICH PHYSICAL LAWS 

as a smuggler or contraband dealer studies the excise 
laws, to discover, not how we shall obey them, but how 
we shall avoid the penalties annexed to their infringe- 
ment. This is quite inadmissible with regard to the 
moral law, and therefore the two sets of laws stand on 
a perfectly different footing. But what is more ; cases 
occur when it is not only permissible, but when it may 
be our duty to despise these mere prudential considera- 
tions, and directly to disobey, as Mr Combe would call 
it, the physical law, taking our chance of the penalty, or 
even with the certainty of incurring it in all its extent. 

But there is another circumstance which distinguishes 
these two sets of laws, and which shews that, so far as we 
are concerned, they are not so entirely independent. 
It is important to observe, that obedience to the moral 
Imo, taking this in its largest sense, as including the 
proper use of all our faculties, almost necessarily leads to 
the consequence of our properly attending to all the 
laws, which affect us, relative to the course of external 
nature ; and even in the most disastrous circumstances, 
places us in the most favourable position for what Mr 
Combe would call obeying these laws* I shall take 
notice of both these points in their order. 

It would be in vain to attempt to give instances of all 
the modes in which the intellect of man avails itself of 
the arrangements of nature to produce the effects he 
desires. One principle, which is almost universal, and 
upon which depend a vast number of useful results, may 
be called the principle of antagonism^ — namely, employing 
one law of nature to counteract another. In agriculture, 
we oppose the strength of men and horses to overcome 
the cohesion and resistance of the soil. In navigation, 
we oppose the force of the wind to the resistance of the 
water. In building, the materials are kept in their 
places by their opposing weight and strain, of which the 



MAY BE DISOBEYED. 115 

arch may be given as an example. In cooking, we 
employ the heat of boiling water, or the radiating power 
of a common fire, to reduce the cohesion, or separate 
the ingredients of the substances used as food. In 
chemistry, we apply to the substance we work upon, 
other agents, the particles of which have a more power- 
ful attraction for its particles than these have for one 
another, and thus produce innumerable changes. 

In all these cases it is absurd to talk of our obeying 
laws of nature. On the contrary, we make them obey 
us. The great object of our proceedings is to coun- 
teract one law by means of another. Instead of obeying 
these laws, we command them, and the real use of our 
studying them is that we may be enabled to wield them 
as instruments for effecting our purposes. In short, we 
just come to the emphatic and expressive maxim of 
Bacon, that in every thing regarding natural science, 
" knowledge is power." 

I shall now mention some cases where these laws may 
be properly despised or disregarded. When Mutius 
Scaevola was brought before King Porsenna, in order to 
afford him a proof of the indomitable firmness of the 
Roman character, he thrust his hand into a pan of 
burning charcoal, and held it there until it was half 
consumed, informing him at the same time that a large 
number of equally determined spirits had sworn to put 
him (Porsenna) to death, and that they never would 
desist from their purpose so long as he remained in the 
Roman territory. This action is said to have convinced 
the barbarian of the hopelessness of his enterprise, and 
induced him to make peace with a nation whom he 
could never expect to subdue. In this case, Scasvola 
disobeyed no laio. He despised the pain which he knew 
was to be the consequence of his bold and intrepid 
action. He voluntarily submitted to that pain : and his 



16 SUPERIORITY OF 

disabled hand, throughout his future life, instead of 
being a memorial of his punishment, became a trophy 
of his fame. 

Hundreds of instances might be mentioned to shew 
the superiority of the moral law over those prudential 
rules of conduct which, in ordinary circumstances, are 
generally observed in deference to the Jaws of external 
nature. In cases of unavoidable calamity, by fire, by 
flood, or by pestilence, we are often imperatively called 
upon to assist unfortunate sufferers, though with very 
great danger to ourselves; and even when we fail in such 
attempts, or fall victims to our own efforts to succour the 
distressed, the feeling with which our exertions are 
regarded, is certainly any thing but that of disapproba- 
tion. We have obeyed the superior law, — a law from 
which nothing could excuse us, except a manifest proved 
impossibility. 

But the superiority of the moral law shines most con- 
spicuously in cases where attempts have succeeded in the 
face of difficulties which, antecedently to success, must 
have defied all calculation. Many instances may be 
given of heroic courage succeeding in attempts which 
appeared at the time altogether hopeless. It would be 
tiresome to repeat a list of cases. I shall refer to one — 
the well known story of the mother in a Swiss village, 
whose child was carried off by an eagle to its eyry among 
some neighbouring rocks. The accident being dis- 
covered, some of the most active and enterprising of the 
young men started to scale the precipice, and endeavour 
to rescue the unconscious victim ; but one after another 
was compelled to desist, from a conviction that the ascent 
was impossible. Not so the mother, who, impelled by 
that mysterious law of love which bound her to her child, 
was blind to all danger, and could see no impossibility ; 
she thought of nothing but her child, and that she must 



THE MOR AL LAW. 1 1 7 

save it ; and, clinging to the roots of bushes, and pro- 
jecting points of rock almost invisible, she made her way 
over precipices which the most adventurous chamois 
hunter had never trod, gained the nest of the rapacious 
birds before they commenced their repast, scared them 
away with her cries, rescued her child, and returned with 
it safe and unharmed to the terrified and astonished 
group collected in the valley below. 

Mr Combe states, as an example of the independence 
of the laws, the following case : — " The most pious and 
venerated missionaries, sailing to civilize and Christianize 
the heathen, may, if they embark in an unsound ship, 
be drowned by disobeying a physical law, without their 
destruction being arrested by their morality. On 
the other hand, if the greatest monsters of iniquity were 
embarked in a staunch and strong ship, and managed it 
well, they might, and, on the general principles of the 
government of the world, would escape drowning, in 
circumstances similar to those which would send the 
missionaries to the bottom." All that is perfectly 
undeniable, but it does not exhaust the case. If good 
and pious men embark in an unsound ship, knowing it to 
be unsound, they disobey the laws of common prudence, 
and may expect to suffer the penalty : nay, on their own 
principles, they are guilty of gross presumption, and of 
tempting Providence, so that they are doubly culpable. 
But place the two sets of characters in the same circum- 
stances. Supposing both to set sail in vessels believed to 
be sea-worthy, but which become leaky, or strike upon 
a sunken rock, or meet with any other misfortune, Mr 
Combe himself will admit, that, in such a case, the crew 
in whom all the powers of intellect, and all the sentiments 
and propensities are in a sound state, and directed 
to their proper objects, in strict accordance with the 
moral law, would be better fitted to take the precautions 



118 SUPERIORITY OF 

necessary to ensure safety, than men who were in the 

habitual practice of abusing their faculties and indulging 
in every vice. The one, viewing with calm resignation the 
prospect of imminent death, would possess their faculties 
clear and undisturbed ; hence they would be able to take 
all necessary precautions, without hurry or confusion ; 
while the other, tortured with fear and remorse for past 
misdeeds, would be unable to combine their efforts with 
any useful effect : and hence, to use Mr Combe's own 
words, " the former, on the general principles of the 
government of the world, might escape drowning, in 
circumstances which would send the wicked and licentious 
crew to the bottom." 

The case of the ship Griper, related by Mr Combe, 
in which the crew were saved from imminent danger, in 
consequence of " the admirable moral and intellectual 
condition of their minds," is a direct illustration of this 
principle; and similar instances wril be found in the 
accounts given of the shipwreck of the Alceste, in the 
Straits of Gasper, in 1816 ; in that of the burning of the 
Kent, in the Bay of Biscay, in 1829, and various others ; 
while a melancholy instance of a contrary result, arising 
from the want of proper moral and religious feeling, is 
shewn in the case of the shipwreck of the Medusa, a 
French frigate, on the coast of Africa, in the same year 
in which the Alceste was wrecked, namely, 1816. 

The efficacy of a sound condition and moral state 
of the faculties, appears in all cases where great exer- 
tions are to be made, and when men are placed in cir- 
cumstances which call forth all their latent energies. 
Instances of this occur both in offensive and defensive 
war, (a state which more than almost any thing else 
rouses the faculties of man, and enables him to exhibit 
qualities which would otherwise lie dormant,) when the 
courage inspired by moral considerations has generally 



THE MORAL LAW. 119 

proved superior to mere numerical force. Scarcely any 
superiority of numbers, even when aided by the highest 
military skill, has ever proved sufficient to crush a people 
determined to preserve their religion and their liberties, 
of which examples may be found in the wars carried on 
by the arms of Spain against the inhabitants of the Low 
Countries in the sixteenth centurv, and the struggles G f 
the Swiss cantons against the house of Austria in the 
fourteenth. 

It is cases like these that redeem history from the 
reproach of being a mere record of crimes, as they shew 
what human nature is capable of, in doing and in suffer- 
ing, when animated by conscientious zeal and moral 
principle. We feel a deep interest in the fate of those 
who are unjustly attacked, we deplore their losses, we 
rejoice in their success ; but whatever may be their varied 
fortune, we generally find, that, in the end, the plans of 
the oppressor are baffled, and the cause of justice and 
humanity triumphs. 

In barbarous times, before men w r ere brought fully 
under subjection to equitable laws and impartial judges, 
and when disputes were settled by wager of battle, even 
in this rude mode of determining differences, however 
absurd it may appear to us, the party who maintained 
the cause of truth and justice possessed an advantage 
over his adversary, which in many, perhaps in most 
cases, had the effect to incline the victory in his favour. 
The sense of right nerved his arm with double vigour, 
and inspired him with the confidence of fighting under 
the protection of Heaven ; while the sense of wrong 
weighed upon the spirit of his adversary, unsteadied his 
aim, and weakened the force of his blow T s. Thus we are 
told, many, of previously approved courage, have, in 
such combats, felt themselves unable to exert their 
usual prowess, and, conscience-stricken, yielded to their 



120 A REVEALED LAW NECESSARY. 

adversaries, and confessed their misdeeds. The poet 
represents such a character exclaiming, — 

Hali ! I am feeble ! 
Some undone widow sits upon mine arm, 
And takes away the use on 't ; and my sword, 
Glued to the scabbard with wrong'd orphans' tears, 
Will not be drawn. Massingee. 

The cowardice of criminals is proverbial. w The 
thief believes each bush an officer." Those who commit 
any great crime, seem to act as if deprived of their 
reason. Nothing, in general, can exceed the stupidity 
of murderers. With every motive for concealment, they 
generally act in such a manner as to betray their guilt ; 
and, in the absence of all other evidence, convict them- 
selves by their own folly. Remorse for guilt, joined to 
the fear of detection, seem to produce a kind of stupe- 
faction, and a confusion of the intellect, which lead to 
the above results. 

These considerations might be sufficient to prove the 
superiority of the moral law, — to shew that its binding 
power differs, not merely in degree, but in kind, from 
that of those rules which we are led to adopt in com- 
pliance with the arrangements of external nature ; and 
that, in some cases, it is even able, within certain limits, 
to correct and modify their effects. But there is another 
circumstance which places this matter in a still clearer 
light : A Revelation has been granted to fix and ex- 
plain the moral law, while nothing of the kind has been 
thought necessary with regard to those inferior pru- 
dential rules which bear reference to the laws of physical 
and organic objects. 



A REVEALED LAW NECESSARY. 121 



III. — Considerations shewing that a Revealed Laiv was necessary. 

That a moral revelation was necessary cannot be 
seriously disputed. I have already stated Bishop Butler's 
opinion as to this ; but I wish to shew, that the principles 
admitted by Dr Spurzheim and Mr Combe lead to the 
same conclusion. The rules of conduct deducible from 
the moral feelings, though felt to be strongly binding, 
are confessedly imperfect. No man possesses all the 
moral and intellectual faculties (from which, and by which 
alone, these laws can be deduced) in a state of the highest 
perfection. In the generality of mankind these are more 
or less defective, and some of them even altogether inope- 
rative. This is not merely the statement of divines, but 
is acknowledged by Dr Spurzheim and Mr Combe, in 
various passages of their writings. Mr Combe states, 
(p. 15, col. 2,) that, "in most individuals, one or several 
of the moral or intellectual organs [faculties] are so 
deficient in size [power,] in proportion to the organs of 
the propensities, that their individual perceptions of 
duty would be far under the highest standard." The 
doctrine of the Fall, or the universal degeneracy of the 
human race, is one which Mr Combe has denied, but I 
submit that it is demonstrated to be true by this very fact. 
How this should be overlooked by him, is to me perfectly 
unaccountable; for were there no other evidence on the 
subject, and were Scripture even silent concerning it, I 
would have considered this of itself as being almost 
sufficient to have established the doctrine. The exis- 
tence of the faculties of veneration, hope, conscientious- 
ness, benevolence, and those other moral feelings which 
have been denied to the brutes, — supposing it to be, as 
Mr Combe believes it to be, proved, that such faculties 
have been conferred upon man, — affords unquestionable 

L 



122 MEANS OF FIXING 

proof that he was created in a state of exalted perfection : 
the acknowledged deficiency of these sentiments in the 
generality of mankind, and their evident imperfection 
even in the best of men, sufficiently prove that he has 
degenerated, or, in other words, fallen from that state. 

Dr Spurzheim divides conscience into absolute and 
individual: by the former he means what the rule ought 
to be, as dictated by all the moral and intellectual facul- 
ties in the most perfect state;* and by the latter, what is 
dictated by the particular feelings as they exist in each 
individual ; and as these are in no individual case 
absolutely perfect, it follows, that no man can trust 
entirely to the dictates of his own conscience,! and 
hence that there is a necessity for a positive law, fixed 
by legislation, divine or civil, to be the standard and rule 
of our actions. 

Dr Spurzheim, in his work on the Philosophy of the 
Mind, asks the question, — " What individual can deter- 
mine moral evil and moral good: that is, dictate the 
moral laws ?" To which he gives the following remark- 
able answer, — " I think it is with moral as with all other 
principles : a blind man cannot establish the principles 
of colouring, nor one born deaf those of music. The 
great painter gives the rules of his art, and the great 
genius for music indicates the laws of harmonv. In the 
same way, he who possesses the faculties proper to man 
in the highest perfection, and in whose actions they pre- 
dominate — he who can challenge the world to convict him 

* " How may conscience be divided? Answer. Into absolute and 
individual. The first, is conscience, as it ought to be for all men ; the 
second, as itsname implies, is the conscience of individuals." — Spurzheim's 
Natural Laws, p. 88. 

t " Can we trust to the individual consciences of mankind ? Answer. 
No, it is impossible. Many feel very slightly the necessity of being 
just, and never think of examining actions with relation to rectitude." — 
Ibid. p. 89. 



THE RULE OF RIGHT. 123 

of sin,* — has a right to determine moral principles, and to 
fix rules of moral conduct. Those, therefore, who would 
make exceptions, and say, i Follow my words and not 
my deeds,' have no title to give rules of action to the 
community, or to superintend their practice. How 
noble was the saying of Christ on this point, — { If I do 
not the works of my Father, believe me not?" 

I cannot tell what lias been in the mind of Dr Spur- 
zheim when he wrote the above passage, — whether he 
believed that any mere man does, or ever did possess the 
requisite perfection ; or whether he thought a divine 
revelation necessary. Whatever was his meaning as to 
this, certainly his statement conforms so far with the 
Christian system, according to which a being has appeared 
on earth, possessing all the requisites he mentions for 
enabling him to determine moral principles, and to fix 
rules of moral conduct ; and who has accordingly left us 
rules and principles which are absolutely perfect, and 
admit neither of alteration nor improvement. 

Mr Combe takes a different view of the subject. He 
holds, that " the dictates of the moral and intellectual 
powers, which constitute rules of conduct, are the collec- 
tive dicta of the highest minds, illuminated with the 
greatest knowledge." Where are we to look for these dicta, 
or how are we to discover and determine which are the 
hicrhest minds, illuminated with the greatest knowledge ? 
Are they to be self-constituted, or chosen by others ? 
If the latter, by whom is the choice to be made, and how? 
What is to be the qualification for the vote in electing 
these representatives of the human race ? Are we to have 
a ten pound franchise ? or household or universal suf- 
frage ? Alas ! looking to the species of wisdom we find 
in the assemblies so elected, we much fear there will be 
neither certainty nor unanimity in the decisions of such 
* So in the oridnal. 



124 ALL HUMAN SYSTEMS 

representatives. Those who are the fittest to act 'and 
decide, will be last to become candidates for the honour. 
The oracle, when asked by Croesus where a really wise 
and happy man was to be found, referred him to Aglaus; 
but no one at the court of Croesus knew, or had ever 
heard, of such a sage ; and, after a long search, he was 
discovered in an obscure situation, and in a low rank of 
life, poor but contented, digging in his garden. 

Supposing this assembly met, how are they to proceed 
in settling disputed points ? A. has large benevolence, 
and B. great conscientiousness; and of course they differ 
as wide as the poles asunder on various questions of 
criminal legislation, and many other points. How are 
these questions to be decided ? By the vote of a majo- 
rity ? or how ? Hundreds of such questions occur, to 
which no answer can be given, which can be considered 
authoritative and decisive. The truth is, that the whole 
is a mere dream. How are we to expect a consistent or 
harmonious system, embracing the entire range of moral 
science, proceeding from a collection of various minds, 
however excellent in their way, yet necessarily, from 
their organization, taking different views of many points, 
some of which may be of the first importance, when here, 
on the very threshhold, we find a difference so striking 
between two minds, both of high moral and intellectual 
qualities, as to the very means by which a rule is to be 
attained ? Dr Spurzheim and Mr Combe, both profess- 
ing the same principles, differ at the first step. One 
says a rule can only be given by an absolutely perfect 
being ; the other says it is to be obtained by the collective 
wisdom of all the highest minds. Who shall decide 
when such doctors disagree ? 

Nothing can be more certain than the fact, that no 
perfect system of morals ever has been produced by man's 
unassisted faculties. The systems of the ancient philo- 



OF LAWS IMPERFECT, 125 

sophers are acknowledged to be imperfect. Those which 
have been produced in modern times are not such as to 
supply their deficiencies. Volney and Diderot will 
hardly be said to have succeeded better than Plato, 
Aristotle, and Zeno, Mr Combe considers that they 
have failed, because they did not possess a knowledge of 
the true philosophy of mind. Is the system of Dr 
Spurzheim, who he imagines to have attained that 
knowledge, a perfect one, or has he (Mr C.) alone 
attained perfection ? 

I may refer to any one who has read the works of both 
these philosophers, to say, whether either of them have 
made the least approach to a clear and intelligible, not 
to say a perfect system, They refer us to sentiments of 
benevolence, of justice, of veneration, of firmness, and 
various others which God has implanted in man, and 
which man alone possesses ; and they expatiate most 
eloquently on the excellence of these sentiments, and 
speak in general terms of a law which they tell us is in 
harmony with all of them, and with the whole nature of 
man ; but they are unable to produce a single distinct 
principle icherein this law consists •, without reverting to 
the language of that very Scripture whose authority they 
disclaim, and which their system is intended to supersede. 
Dr Spurzheim, and also Mr Combe, refer repeatedly to 
the principle of " doing to others as we would that 
they should do to us." Where did they find that 
principle ? Have they deduced it fairly from the facts 
furnished by phrenology, or established it on any other 
grounds purely philosophical ? No such thing. They 
have stolen it, with many others, from Revelation, 
without the aid of which they would never have been 
able to work it out. When they do descend to parti- 
culars, and endeavour to establish principles of their 
own, they involve themselves in endless contradiction- 

l2 



126 REVELATION NECESSARY. 

and absurdities. The rules they propose contain 
nothing definite or certain, nothing upon which we can 
place the smallest reliance. They talk about justice 
without telling us what it means, and duty and obligation, 
without explaining what these point at. They talk of 
the supremacy of certain sentiments, while they leave out 
of view the highest objects to which these sentiments 
may be directed. They are at variance upon some of 
the plainest cases, and with reference to the simplest and 
most important concerns of life. Even the institution of 
marriage, which forms the very root from which all the 
other relations of society are derived, is not placed by 
them on any firm foundation, and all that they say 
respecting it is of the most loose and unsatisfactory 
description. The same may be said of the relations 
between parent and child, master and servant, and all 
the other important relations of life. They give 
absolutely no rules, they furnish us with no principles 
which are to guide our conduct in regard to such rela- 
tions. They do not seem to be aware of this deficiency 
themselves, for the relations I here speak of are so 
firmly established in society, as now constituted, that 
they seem to have taken them for granted, without ever 
looking for a foundation for them in their new system. 
But when we come to cases of a more complicated kind, 
— to questions regarding property, and other rights, 
civil or political, — we see they are completely be- 
wildered, and that they are embarked in a sea without 
a shore, and that they are without a chart, without a 
compass, and without a rudder. 

What, then, becomes of the boast, that the natural 
laws are universal, invariable, and unbending f Perhaps 
this might be the case if we could ascertain what they 
are ; but we have the acknowledgment of the supporters 
of the system themselves, that this is not the case, and 



REVELATION NECESSARY. 1*27 

that we have the laws still to seek. With regard to the 
physical and organic laws, and the relative laws of 
human conduct to be derived from these, it is admitted, 
that w r e are so much in the dark, that they may not be 
discovered for an innumerable series of years. And as 
to the moral law T , our condition is even worse, as our 
teachers are not even agreed by what means its dictates 
are to be discovered. We are, then, shut up to the 
conviction, that a revelation was necessary. The moral 
law, originally written in distinct and legible characters 
upon man's heart and conscience, having become defaced 
by the corruption of his nature, a republication of it by 
a revelation was necessary. And such a revelation and 
republication have been granted, not once only, but on 
two memorable occasions : first, at the original delivery 
of the law to the Israelites by Moses, amidst the thun- 
ders of Sinai; and secondly, by this having received the 
fullest confirmation and sanction from the Son of God 
himself, by w r hom it has been explained and illustrated 
in a more perfect manner, and its authority extended 
over the whole human race. This moral law, thus 
doubly revealed and republished, with every sanction of 
supreme authority, does, in fact, possess all the charac- 
ters which have been arrogated to belong to the 
" natural laws," — namely, it is Universal, Invariable, 
Harmonious in itself, conformable to the most perfect 
moral feeling, and to the most perfect reason, and in the 
strictest sense Divine. 

IV. — Perfection and Invariableness of the Revealed Laic. 

It has been the fashion, among writers who do not 
admit the doctrinal part of Christianity, to speak highly 
in praise of the pure and simple, yet sublime morality? 
of the New Testament. Dr Spurzheim, in several 



128 MORALITY OF THE OLD TESTAMENT 

- bears testimony to its excellence : and he 
states, that pure Christianity (meaning thereby Chris- 
tian morality) surpasses all other revealed religions in 
every kind ol that it stands the scrutiny 

of reason. % It is. however, generally held by him. that 
the morality of the N z /.ment is infinitelv superior 

to that of the Old.- 1 - If this were true, it would argue an 
imperfection in the original revelation, and prove, that 
the K law is neither universal nor invariable. Dr 

Spurzheim asks, •'•' Do the religious and moral precepts 
of the Xew Testament surpass those of the Old in per- 
fection and excellence ?" And he answers. ;; Whoever 
will compare the qualities attributed to the Supreme 
Bein£. regard t; t of the laws contained, and 

observe the means proposed for teaching these, in each, 
must inevitably recognize the infinite superiority of the 
doctrines of Christianity."'' Now. whethei re to 

judge by one or another,, or all of these criteria, it may 
be proved, in the clearest manner, that this is a mistake. 
What are the qualities attributed to God in the Old 
Testament ? Is lie not described as the M Lord God, 
merciful and gracious, long-suffering and abundant in 
goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, for- 
giving iniquity, and transgression, and sin. "J In another 
place he is described as " visiting the iniquities of the 
lathers upon the children unto the third and fourth 
veneration of them that hate him : but shewing mercy 
unto thousands of them that love him, and keep his 
commandmenis."$ " The Lord is merciful and gracious, 
-low to anger, and plenteous in mercy. Lii 
pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear 
him." And again, " The Lord is gracious and full of 
compassion : slow to anger and of great mercy. The 

• Nat. Laws, p. 193. - Dad. ;. Z E.io'.u?. xxxiv-. 6.7 . 

..=. xx, 5. ?-::!::: cii: S— 13. 



COMPARED WITH THAT OF THE NEW. 129 

Lord is good to all,and his tender mercies are over all 
his works."* Are there any qualities attributed to God 
in the New Testament different from the above ? Can 
there be any superior, or any that can more thoroughly 
impress us with love and reverence for his name ? 

Again, if we regard the spirit of the Jaws contained 
in the Old Testament, we shall find not merely that they 
are no way inferior to the precepts in the New, but that 
they are identically the same. For what do we find 
declared to be the two great commandments, on which 
our Saviour has told us " hang all the law and the 
prophets?" They are the following, — "Thou shalt 
love the Lord thy God, with all thy heart, and with all 
thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy 
mind : and thy neighbour as thyself." And what else 
do the precepts of the New Testament inculcate, but 
love to God, and love to man ? The great and com- 
prehensive precept of our Lord, " to do to others as we 
would have them to do to us," is just a different mode 
of expressing the Old Testament commandment to 
" love our neighbour as ourselves." The two precepts 
are identical ; but the way in which the rule is put by 
our Saviour is more easily understood, and more readily 
applied, so as to have an influence on the heart and the 
practice of believers. Many practical rules* of conduct 
may be quoted from the Old Testament, corresponding 
exactly with the precepts of the New, such as the well 
known one in Micah, " He hath shewn thee, O man, 
what is good ; and what doth the Lord require of thee, 
but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly 
with thy God?"f 

The real superiority in the New Testament does not 
lie in the laws themselves, but in the more full explana- 
tion and application of those laws, which had already 
* Psalm cxlv. 7, S. - Micah, vi. 8. 



130 MORALITY OF THE OLD TESTAMENT 

been distinctly promulgated by Moses and the Prophets, 
and in the more clear revelation of those sanctions by 
which obedience to them is inculcated and enforced. 
Thus, in reference to the law " to love our neighbour as 
ourself," the Jews understood this only to refer to their 
dealings with those of their own nation. But Christ at 
once undeceived them in this respect. When asked by 
the lawyer, " But who is my neighbour ?" he replied by 
relating the parable of the good Samaritan, an individual 
of a nation with whom the Jews had no dealings, whom 
they utterly despised and hated, — thus unequivocally 
intimating, that all men, of every country, are in this 
sense, and in reference to this command, our neigh- 
bours, and that the precept is of universal application. 
And again, in reference to the special commandments of 
the second table of the law, he shews, that it is not merely 
the outward act that is commanded or forbidden, but 
that the commandments are intended to reach to the 
thoughts and intentions of the heart. This is in fact 
neither any addition to, or extension of, the original 
law, as contained in the Old Testament : for unless a 
thick veil had been on their hearts, the Jews might have 
seen, that all this was included in the precept, to love 
our neighbour as ourselves. And the very same thing is 
contained in the tenth commandment, which is expressly 
directed against all irregular and inordinate desires of 
the heart and the affections. 

One great point in which the precepts and the morality 
of the Old Testament are supposed to differ from those 
in the New, is the greater stress which is generally 
imagined to be laid in the latter on the virtues of meek- 
ness, patience, and forgiveness of injuries. But even 
here there is really no difference in the sentiments 
inculcated, but only — what might be expected — their 
being more fully explained and emphatically enforced 



COMPARED WITH THAT OF THE NEW. 131 

in the teaching of our Saviour, than in the words of the 
old prophets. 

The sentence, "Blessed are the meek, for they shall 
inherit the earth," is quoted verbatim from the 37th 
Psalm. " The meek. shall inherit the earth, and shall 
delight themselves in the abundance of peace." 

So far in regard to those general moral laws which, 
though delivered in the first instance to the Israelites, 
were intended for and suited to the circumstances of all 
mankind. These are, in the strictest sense, universal, 
invariable, and unbending. As to those particular 
enactments specially directed and intended for the 
chosen people, though they contain many peculiarities 
suited to their situation, and the purposes which, in 
God's providence, they were destined to serve in the 
economy of the world, it can be shewn, that the general 
spirit of the laws is the same, and that they are composed 
on the same principles as those which have dictated the 
precepts of the New Testament. In the Roman law, 
which may be considered as the most perfect code that 
ever was framed by any heathen nation, a broad dis- 
tinction is drawn between those rules of conduct which 
are demanded by justice, and those which are dictated 
by benevolence. Though conformity to both is considered 
right and proper, it is the first only that the law inter- 
feres to enforce by positive regulations ; the latter is left 
to individual feeling and public opinion. The first are 
termed the jus expletrix ; the other, the jus attributrix : 
the rights in the one case being full and complete, and 
definable by strict rules ; those in the other, not being 
considered so definable. In the Jewish law T , on the 
contrary, there are positive regulations by which acts of 
benevolence towards man and beast, are in many cases 
rendered imperative, and this is believed to be the case 
in the laws of no other ancient nation. The following 
instances may be quoted : — 



132 PARTICULAR PRECEPTS. 

" If thou meet thine enemy's ox or his ass going 
astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again. 

" If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying 
under his burden, and wouldest forbear to help him ; 
thou shalt surely help with him." 

" Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger ; for ye know 
the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the 
land of Egypt."* 

In the following laws, regard is not only had to the 
dictates of benevolence : but to the laws of nature, by 
which every thing, animate and inanimate, is made to 
require occasional rest ; even the land, by unceasing 
crops, becoming unproductive. 

" Six years thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather 
in the fruits thereof: But the seventh year thou shalt 
let it rest and lie still ; that the poor of thy people may 
eat : and what they leave, the beasts of the field shall eat. 
In like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard, and 
with thy oliveyard. 

" Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh 
day thou shalt rest ; that thine ox and thine ass may rest, 
and the son of thy handmaid and the stranger may be 
ef re shed." f 

6 Thou shalt not pervert the judgment of the stranger, 
nor of the fatherless : nor take the widow's raiment to 
pledge"! 

" When thou cuttest down thine harvest in thy field, 
and hast forgot a sheaf in the field, thou shalt not so 
again to fetch it : it shall be for the stranger, for the 
fatherless, and for the icidoic : that the Lord thy God 
may bless thee in all the work of thine hands. 

"When thou beatest thine olive tree, thou shalt not 
£0 over the bouo;hs a^ain : it shall be for the stranger, 
for the fatherless, and for the widow. 

* Exod. xxiii. 4, 5, 9. t Exod. xxii. 10—12. t Deut. xxiv. 17. 



t 



LAWS OF BENEVOLENCE 13S 

154 When thou gatherest the grapes of thy vineyard, 
thou shalt not glean it afterward : it shall be for the 
stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow." * 

These are dictates of benevolence, such as have never 
occurred to other lawgivers to establish as laws, but 
plainly suggested by the most profound wisdom.f And, 
as addressed to the Israelites, the following reason for 
them is stated, giving them, in their case, an additional 
sanction ; and, as in many other instances, rendering 
their laws a perpetual memorial of the remarkable events 
of their history. " Thou shalt remember that thou wert 
^i bondman in the land of Egypt ; and the Lord thy God 
redeemed thee hence : therefore, I command thee to do 
this thing." 

From the above, it will, I think, be evident, that both 
the general moral law, and the peculiar national insti- 
tutions delivered to the Israelites, are precisely the same 
in substance and in spirit as the precepts of the New 
Testament ; and that the only superiority in the latter, 
consists in the more full explanation and clearer enforce- 
ment of their mild and beneficent principles. I am 
^aware of only one exception, in which a special rule 5 
relaxed in the case of the ancient Jews, is more rigidly 
and strictly enforced upon the followers of Christ. In 
reference to the law of marriage, the former were per- 
mitted in certain cases to put away their wives, by giving 
them a writing of divorcement. But this is said to have 
been permitted solely on account of the " hardness of 
■their hearts." The Jews, at the time this law was pro- 
mulgated, were a rude and semi-barbarous people. They 
had been for upwards of a century in a state of servitude 
to the Egyptians, and during the latter part of that 

* Deut. xxiv. 19—21. 

t This has been overlooked by Dr Chalmers in his argument against 
•the Poor Laws. See Natural Theology, vol. ii. pp. 113—119. 



134 LAWS OF MARRIAGE. 

period, the servitude had been of a \ery hard and galling 
description, — a state which was incompatible with much 
refinement of manners or sentiment. If among such a 
people marriage had been altogether indissoluble, it 
might have given rise to much domestic cruelty; and 
rude uncivilized men might not have hesitated to rid 
themselves of wives they hated, by putting them to death. 
On this account, not because in itself right or proper, 
but to avoid a worse evil, permission of divorce was 
given under certain conditions. But in the case of 
Christians, this permission is recalled ; and it is positively 
declared, that divorce shall not he allowed for any 
reason, except that of conjugal infidelity. 

On this subject Dr Spurzheim, and it is believed also 
Mr Combe, hold opinions at variance with the Christian 
code. Dr Spurzheim, in his Catechism, has the follow- 
ing question: — " Is divorce permitted by natural 
morality?" Answer, "Yes. The couples which have 
no family, or which can provide for the children they 
may have, in as far as justice requires, do well to 
separate rather than to live in perpetual warfare;" and 
he adds reasons for this opinion, which I need not quote, 
Mr Combe says nothing on this subject in his present 
work ; but in his lectures on Moral Philosophy, delivered 
in the course of last winter, he has, I understand, 
advocated the right of divorce. He says, in his book, * 
that "as far as he can perceive, the dictates of the 
natural laws and those of revelation coincide in all 
matters relating to practical duties in temporal affairs." 
Now, here is a most important matter, relating to the 
first practical concern of human life, in which Dr 
Spurzheim and Mr Combe, our great authorities in 
regard to the natural laws, have stated a rule directly 

* Page 10, col. 2, 



LAWS OF MARRIAGE. 135 

contrary to that delivered to us in the most express 
terms by Christ himself.* 

But in comparing the law revealed in the Scriptures 
with the natural laws as now explained and promulgated 

* The manner in which this is done is the most express and unequi- 
vocal that can he conceived, and cannot he softened or explained away 
hy any ingenuity. The rule is distinctly stated in St Matthew's Gospel 
in the Sermon on the Mount, — " It hath been said, Whosoever shall put 
away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement : But I say 
unto you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause 
of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery : and whosoever shall 
marry her that is divorced committeth adultery, "f Some additional 
particulars with regard to this are mentioned hy St Mark, as having 
been stated by Christ on another occasion. " And the Pharisees came 
to him, and asked him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife ? 
tempting him. And he answered and said unto them, What did Moses 
command you ? And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of 
divorcement, and to put her away. And Jesus answered and said unto 
them, For the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept : But 
from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female. 
For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his 
wife ; and they twain shall be one flesh : so then they are no more twain, 
but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man 
put asunder. And in the house his disciples asked him again of the 
same matter. And he saith unto them, Whosoever shall put away his 
wife, and marry another, committeth adultery against her. And if a 
woman shall put away her husband and be married to another, she 
committeth adultery." J The law as revealed, then, is quite clear. At 
the first, even at the creation, the institution of marriage was formed, 
and declared to be indissoluble. Moses, in the case of the Jews, and on 
account of the hardness of their hearts, permitted divorce to prevent 
greater evils ; but Christ restored the original laic, and to that his 
followers are bound to pay obedience. That this law, as now under- 
stood and adhered to in Christian countries, is founded on the most 
impregnable grounds of reason and justice, and is the rule best suited to 
promote the welfare of man and the ends of civil society, is, I conceive, 
demonstrable ; but it has pleased Dr Spurzheim and Mr Combe to think 
otherwise, and to conceive themselves w T iser than the great founder of 
our faith. The question would require to be discussed at greater length 
than is possible in this little work : I merely state the point here to 
shew, that Mr Combe is wrong in supposing that his views on every 
point coincide with the dictates of revelation. 

t Matthew, v. 31, 32. J Xark, x. 2—12. 



236 FACULTIES HAVING REFERENCE TO 

by Mr Combe, it is necessary to state, that the latter are 
not only vague and imperfect so far as they go, and 
infinitely inferior in distinctness and precision to those 
simple and sublime rules of conduct delivered to us by 
the inspired writers ; but that they are defective in so far 
as they omit one whole branch of our duties, and that 
the most important of all. The very highest rules, if 
rules they can be called, which are stated by Dr Spur- 
zheim or Mr Combe as the guides of our conduct, regard 
merely our intercourse with our fellow-men, or the 
improvement of our own faculties. They are altogether 
silent with regard to another, and a higher branch of 
duty, — that, namely, which has reference to our connec- 
tion and intercourse with our Divine Creator, and which 
regards another and a future state of existence. This is 
the more inexcusable, inasmuch as, according to the 
system of mental philosophy which they have adopted^, 
and which they conceive to be so much superior to any 
thing that has hitherto been proposed, a particular class 
of faculties has been given, expressly, as it would appear, 
to connect us with the invisible world. These are, the 
faculties of veneration, hope, and wonder, which are 
placed by themselves among the highest of the faculties 
peculiar to man, and whose objects and purpose must 
therefore be of the highest dignity and importance ; and 
yet, according to them, no functions are assigned to 
these faculties of the smallest practical utility. 

If there be, as I hold undoubtedly there is, a faculty 
of veneration, its highest, and indeed its only proper 
object, must be the Supreme Being, who alone possesses 
all the qualities to exercise and to gratify such a feeling 
in the fullest extent. 

If there be a faculty of hope, giving us the desire of 
future and distant good to ourselves and others, then its 
highest and only proper gratification must have reference 



OUR DUTIES TO GOD. 137 

to a future state of existence. It is impossible that such 
a feeling — so strong and irrepressible, so sweet in the 
enjoyment it conveys, and so insatiable in the desires 
and aspirations it gives rise to, — could have been con- 
ferred, if all these aspirations were to be confined to the 
present short and unsatisfactory state, and its gratifica- 
tion finally crushed by the prospect of an event, which 
is close at hand with every one of us — the inevitable 
fate which awaits us all — the natural death of the body. 

If a faculty of iconder has been conferred, to direct 
our attention to -matters which we cannot thoroughly 
understand — to things which we see but in part, and 
know but in part, and which we can here only contem- 
plate as through a glass, darkly, and which inspires the 
most intense desire and curiosity to know those things 
more thoroughly, — this, I conceive, affords a proof, that 
in some way or another, and if not now, in some other 
state of existence, these desires w T ill be more fully grati- 
fied — when that which is now dark will be more plainly 
revealed, and that which is now mysterious will be more 
fully explained — and when new causes of wonder will 
arise in endless and inexhaustible succession. 

These are the natural hopes, feelings, and desires, to 
which these faculties give rise ; but for them the system 
of Mr Combe has provided no gratification, no exercise, 
no intelligible use. He has assigned, and according to 
his principles, by which he confines himself strictly to 
the present visible world, and the province of our bodily 
senses, he can assign no laws for their exercise, as he 
points out no objects upon which they can be adequately 
exercised. 

But what is wanting in Mr Combe's system, is supplied 
by revelation. The proper and legitimate objects of 
these faculties, and the laws by which they are to be exer- 
cised, have both been revealed, and in that revelation 

M 2 



138 THE REVEALED LAW 

are placed in the first rank. As the moral laws are 
superior to the physical and organic, so those laws which 
relate to our connection with the things which are unseen 
and eternal, are superior to the moral. Their obliga- 
tion is in the strictest sense supreme. Obedience to 
them is to be sought in the first place, because it 
includes, or necessarily leads to all other obedience. 

The first great law having relation to the Divine 
Being, is that which has already been quoted, — " Thou 
shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart." This 
includes the whole ; but in condescension to human 
weakness and ignorance, it has been enforced by three 
great practical commands, — forbidding the acknowledg- 
ment of other gods — the worship of idols — and the 
irreverent or unnecessary use of the name of the 
Supreme Being. The purpose of these commands is 
obvious, as guarding against the three great offences 
into which mankind are liable to fall in relation to this 
subject, — polytheism, idolatry, and blasphemy. A 
fourth injunction is added, which has a double reference 
to things divine and human, — the setting aside one day 
in seven, as a day of rest from secular employments, and 
to be devoted principally to the worship of God, the 
study of his law, and the contemplation of the wonders 
of his works. These four laws, if steadily observed, will 
not fail to cherish and keep alive in our hearts that 
reverence towards God, admiration of his wisdom ? 
wonder at his greatness and power, and gratitude for all 
his mercies, that go to form the complex feeling which 
we express by the words worship and adoration. This 
feeling is imperfect, unless all our faculties are more or 
less engaged in it, all the feelings which can be brought 
into harmony with respectful love and reverence, all our 
hopes and fears, all our feelings of attachment, of con- 
fidence, of firm and abiding faith, — all these must be 



OF OUR DUTIES TO GOD, 139 

called into activity in order to the right performance of 
an act of adoration, and are necessary to a compliance 
with the command to love the Lord our God with all 
our heart. 

This, we are told, is the first and great commandment 
of the law. We do not rise to a compliance with this 
by first obeying other laws ; but if we are able to attain 
this, it of itself will lead to all other obedience. If we 
love God, we must desire to please him, and to avoid 
whatever is contrary to his will, and, consequently, the 
love of God leads necessarily to all righteousness. He 
himself has said, " If ye love me, keep my command- 
ments, and this is my commandment that ye love one 
another ;" and if we love one another, we will, of course, 
do no wrong one to another, but rather good, bearing 
one another's burdens. If we love him, and feel a con- 
stant sense of reverence towards him, we will endeavour 
to maintain personal purity, that we may be able to 
render him acceptable service. Personal purity, and 
zeal and activity in well-doing, lead to a clearness of the 
understanding, and a sound condition of all the faculties, 
and this to attention to all minor points by which these 
may be best cultivated and preserved. 

If, therefore, we would improve the condition of man, 
the true mode of proceeding is to begin by improving, 
exercising, and strengthening his religious sentiments, 
and directing them to their proper objects. From this, 
as from a pure and hallowed fountain, will naturally 
flow every other kind of improvement. The diligent and 
persevering use of those means which have been pointed 
out as enabling us to obtain the aid of spiritual influences, 
has been experienced to be effectual in promoting this 
improvement in the case of individuals, and that to a 
degree amounting to a complete change of character ; 
and if this has been the case in individual instances, no 



140 MAIN DEFECT OF MR COMBE'S SYSTEM, 

reason can be stated why the same effects may not 
follow in regard to the race in general, if the same 
means were diligently applied, and steadily and con- 
sistently persevered in through a series of ages ; and 
hence, no bounds can be set to the improvement of the 
world, which may be finally expected from the universal 
diffusion of Christianity. 



CHAPTER V. 

OX THE CONSTITUTION" OF THE HUMAN FACULTIES, CONSIDERED IN RELATION" 
TO THEIR RESPECTIVE OBJECTS. 

Man is composed of an organized body and a 
reasonable soul, and is endowed with capacities and 
powers, animal, rational, moral, and religious. 

Mr Combe has considered his constitution in all 
these different respects except the last. He considers 
man merely in his relations with external objects in the 
present life. He looks exclusively to what is within the 
province of the bodily senses. He confines his views, as 
to space, to the surface of the earth which we at present 
inhabit ; and, as to time, so far as regards the individual, 
to the miserable span of seventy or eighty years, which, 
so far as mere sense is concerned, appears to comprehend 
the term of our existence. 

There would be less objection to this mode of con- 
sidering the subject, if he w r ere merely silent in regard 
to those mighty themes which are suggested by the ideas 
of an unseen and a future world ; but this, I am sorry to 
say, is not the case. He alludes to them, no doubt, and 
most properly states that they belong to the province of 



HIS OMISSION OF A FUTURE STATE. 141 

revelation ; but he does not leave the matter there. He 
not only makes no attempt to shew a correspondence 
between what revelation teaches on these important 
subjects, and the conclusions of natural science, but he 
takes every opportunity, as far as his ability extends, of 
turning the latter, openly or covertly, into a weapon 
of attack against the credibility of the former. We have 
already seen how far he has attempted this in regard to 
the scriptural doctrines of the original perfection, the 
fall and the consequent degeneracy, of man, and we 
have seen that he has signally failed in this attempt. 
yVe shall afterwards have occasion to consider other 
instances of the same kind, in the conclusions he has 
drawn with regard to the paradisaical state, and his 
views respecting death, and the future prospects of the 
human race. These need not be farther anticipated 
here. 

Even though he had merely been silent on these 
subjects, and had confined his attention strictly, as he 
professes to do, to the present life, and to what lies 
within the province of the senses, I would have con- 
sidered such a view of man, and his relations to other 
objects, to be eminently defective, inasmuch as it omits 
by far the most important of these objects and relations. 
The omission is inexcusable. Mr Combe cannot allege 
that speculation on these subjects, in a general way, is 
unphilosophical ; for the most eminent philosophers of 
ancient times, Socrates, Plato, and others, who were 
ignorant of a revelation, shewed that, by the light of 
natural reason alone, man could arrive at conclusions, 
very nearly, if not altogether, amounting to demonstra- 
tion, on the subject of a future state, as well as on the 
existence of a God. And it will be afterwards shewn, that 
the natural arguments for both are greatly strengthened 
by the discoveries of Phrenology. Taking into view^ 



14*2 PRESENT CONDITION OF MAN. 

then, both these peculiarities in Mr Combe's system, — the 
arguments for a future state omitted, which plainly lay in 
his way, and to which he has himself referred in other 
publications, and the arguments openly stated, or covertly 
insinuated, against it, which lay entirely out of his way. — 
we can only surmise his determination to be, to exclude 
it as something that is absurd and incredible, or which, 
if believed at all, is to be believed without evidence : and 
which, therefore, must be unworthy of the consideration 
of a rational beim?. 

I shall pass over what he says respecting man as a 
physical and organized being, as there is nothing in 
regard to these upon which we materially differ. He 
has pointed out some correspondences between our bodily 
frame and external objects, evincing a wise and benevo- 
lent adaptation of the one to the other, as many other 
authors have done before him. This is a most interesting 
subject, and is still far from being exhausted, many 
minute correspondences existing which have not yet 
been adverted to : but enough has been done in this 
field of inquiry to establish beyond all dispute or cavil 
the infinite wisdom, power, and goodness of the Creator. 
This, as Lord Bacon says, is an excellent argument, and 
has been exceedingly well handled by diverse, and I do 
not see that there is any thing in Mr Combe's views 
which has added much either to our knowledge or con- 
viction on the subject. 

Leaving, therefore, those points on which there is no 
difference of opinion, I proceed at once to the consi- 
deration of the mental faculties of man. And here, as 
I stated in the preface, I adopt substantially the same 
system as Mr Combe, namely, that which has been 
gradually evolved and deduced from the observations 
and discoveries of Gall and Spurzheim. Like him, I 
assume this doctrine to be founded in truth, and <; con- 



i 

PHRENOLOGY ASSUMED TO BE TRUE. 143 

sider it to afford the clearest, the most complete, and 
the best supported system of human nature which has 
hitherto been taught." I have, therefore, taken it for 
the basis of my views, but it will be seen that the con- 
clusions I draw from it are very different from his. The 
public will now have an opportunity of judging which of 
these are the most sound and philosophical. 

As I am here arguing with a believer in Phrenology, 
I need not enter into a statement of the evidence on 
which it is founded. I have here Mr Combe on my 
side. He considers the evidence sufficient, and so do I. 
He has, in his various writings, stated the evidences 
originally adduced by the founders of the science, and 
added many original observations of his own, confirming 
and illustrating their views. He has strenuously, and 
I think successfully, answered the common objections to 
the doctrine, as leading to materialism, atheism, and 
fatalism. It is, therefore, unnecessary here to enter into 
these objections, and various others, which have been 
refuted over and over again, and which the opponents 
of the system seem to have at last abandoned. 

As to those who are unacquainted with the science, 
who have not examined its evidences, and have not as 
yet adopted its doctrines, I may propose the scheme of 
the faculties which it exhibits as one which corresponds 
with what we find in nature. Let it be adopted, if they 
will, as a theory, which, as far as it goes, explains a 
great number of the mental phenomena ; and it does not 
appear that they can reasonably object to it, until they 
are able to produce a better, or one which shall explain 
the phenomena more perfectly. To those who wish to 
study the subject, to examine the evidence, and judge 
for themselves, I must refer to the original works of the 
discoverers, Gall and Spurzheim, and to those of Mr 
Combe himself, so far as they treat of the evidences; but 



144 SCHEME OF THE FACULTIES. 

above all, I must recommend the careful and diligent 
observation of nature after the method pointed out by 
these writers, there being no possibility of ariving at 
any fixed or sound belief on the subject, without such 
careful and continued observation. 

I shall now proceed to the enumeration of the facuL* 
ties, as revealed to us by phrenological observation. Mr 
Combe has, in his work, gone over the whole of them 
two or three times; first stating them as divided into 
propensities, sentiments, and intellectual faculties ; next, 
giving a view of these as compared with each other, and 
in order to prove the supremacy of the moral sentiments 
and intellect ; and, lastly, stating them as compared 
with external objects. It is needless at present to follow 
him through all his details. I shall therefore adopt, as 
the basis of my remarks, his first enumeration, giving 
his statement of the faculties, their uses and abuses, in 
his own words, and afterwards adding any thing which 
I may think material to be noticed, which he has either 
omitted, or stated more positively than the observed facts 
appear to me to warrant. 



"ORDER I.— FEELINGS. 

" Genus I. — Propensities, common to man icitk the 
lower animals. 

" The Love of Life. 

" Appetite for Food. — Uses, nutrition. — Abuses^, 
Gluttony and drunkenness." 

Note, This last appears to me to be a mistake. I 
would say that the abuses of this faculty are glut- 
tony and epicurism. Drunkenness, or the abuse 
or excess of stimulating and intoxicating substances, 
such as spirits, opium, tobacco, and the like, pro* 



PROPENSITIES. 145 

ceeds from a different cause. It arises from the 
love of excitement, and depends, not upon one, but 
upon the whole organs of the brain, which are all, 
without exception, subject to the exciting effects 
produced by these substances. 
" ). Amativeness, produces sexual love." 
"2. Philoprogenitiveness. — Uses: affection for 

young and tender beings. — Abuses: pampering and 

spoiling children." 

Note. The peculiar objects of this feeling seem to be 
the young of our own species in general, but parti- 
cularly our own offspring. It is generally stronger 
in the female than in the male, which is evidently a 
wise provision, as the principal care of young chil- 
dren necessarily devolves upon the female. Its abuse 
in pampering and spoiling children, arises solely 
from ignorance ; for when properly enlightened 
by intellect, there can be no doubt that this faculty 
would lead us to consult the permanent welfare 
of the child, in preference to the indulgence of his 
present wishes and immediate feelings. 
" 3. Concentrativeness. — Uses : It gives the desire 

of permanence in place, and renders permanent emotions 

and ideas in the mind. — Abuses : aversion to move 

abroad; morbid dwelling on internal emotions and ideas, 

to the neglect of external impressions." 

Note. 1 his faculty was originally termed inhabitiveness, 
because its organ is found to be large in men and 
animals who are attached to particular spots, and 
averse to change of place. This is the sole function 
attributed to the faculty by Gall and Spurzheim. 
Mr Combe is of opinion that its proper function is 
the power of concentrating various faculties upon 
one subject, or in the performance of one act, and 
that the aversion to motion is only a consequence of 



146 SCHEME OF THE FACULTIES. 

this concentration of thought. Phrenologists are 
not yet agreed upon the point, and much careful 
observation would be required to set it properly at 
rest. 
" 4. Adhesiveness. Uses : attachment, friendship, 
and society result from it. Abuses : Clanship for im- 
proper objects, attachment to worthless individuals. It 
is generally strong in women." 

Note. This faculty gives a tendency to form strong 
attachments to individuals of our own species ; but 
if this gratification is denied, it may shew itself in 
attachment to. some of the inferior animals. In 
genera], it inclines us to love those who love us; 
but this reciprocity of affection is not always 
necessary. It may also give rise to a love of our 
native country or district, and, along with the last 
mentioned faculty, to the feeling and the love of 
home. Joined to the sexual propensity, it leads, 
even among the most ignorant savages, to a kind of 
marriage, or, at least, a permanent union between 
individuals of opposite sex. Hence it appears that 
this institution has a foundation in the nature of 
man, and is suited to the human faculties. Other 
faculties, however, particularly conscientiousness, 
firmness, and veneration, united to positive, legal, 
and divine sanctions, are necessary to give the 
institution that peculiarly sacred and binding- 
character which it has in all civilized countries. 
"5. Combativeness.— Uses : courage to meet danger, 
and overcome difficulties ; tendency to oppose and -attack 
whatever requires opposition, and to resist unjust 
encroachments. — Abuses : love of contention, and ten- 
dency to provoke assault." Mr Combe adds, — "This 
faculty obviously adapts man to a world in which danger 
and difficulty abound." 



PROPENSITIES. 147 

Xote, The tendency of this last observation will be seen 
afterwards. That it is true in man's present state 
need not be disputed ; but Mr Combe draws con- 
clusions from it which do not legitimately follow, 
with regard to the unfitness of such a faculty for a 
paradisaical state. This point will be considered 
in the sequel. 
"6. Destructive ness, — Uses: desire to destroy noxious 
objects, and to kill for food. It is very discernible in 
carnivorous animals. — Abuses: cruelty, murder, desire 
to torment, tendency to passion, harshness and severity 
in speech and writing." 

Note. This faculty is by no means limited to the desire 
of destroying living beings. It gives the desire of 
destroying generally, and of breaking or rending 
any object, animate or inanimate, and is not only 
capable of many legitimate uses, as in quarrying, 
mining, clearing forests, cutting roads, &c. but its 
employment is indispensable to the production of 
the simplest article which man is able to construct ; 
it not being possible for human ingenuity to form 
any structure or fabric but by breaking, dividing, 
or otherwise destroying those substances which are 
employed as its materials. Among the abuses of 
this propensity may be mentioned, that innate love 
of mischief which is possessed in a strong degree by 
some individuals, and which is shewn sometimes in 
the wanton defacement of statues, and other orna- 
mental works. 

Mr Combe here adds a remark of a similar ten- 
dency to that which he makes in regard to Com- 
bativeness. M This feeling places man in harmony 
with death and destruction, which are woven into 
the system of sublunary creation." To this I make 
the same answer as in the last case. Though it be 



148 SCHEME OF THE FACULTIES. 

true, as man is now situated, it does not follow that 
it may have been so always, there being abundant 
legitimate exercise for a destroying faculty without 
the destruction of life. 

In his System of Phrenology, Mr Combe men- 
tions, that " Destructiveness has been regarded by 
some phrenologists as communicating a more general 
species of energy to the mind. In endeavouring to 
trace analogically the manner in which it produces 
this last effect, it has been supposed to give an 
impatient craving for excitement : a desire to vent 
the mind, as it were, on something ; a feeling which 
would be delighted with smashing and turmoil, or 
with any great irregular commotion, rather than 
with the listlessness of repose." He afterwards 
observes, — " The real effect of Destructiveness 
seems to be, to communicate ability to act with 
energy in certain situations in which, with that 
organ small, the individual would be completely 
paralyzed. In this way it may add vigour, even to 
the manifestations of benevolence," &c. This is 
just one of the instances in which it is seen that we 
really are not yet arrived at a clear and accurate 
knowledge of the real extent and scope of many of 
the faculties. We see their general tendency ; but 
of their exact limits and functions we have in many 
cases no very definite idea. Mr Combe here men- 
tions, that some phrenologists are of this opinion with 
regard to Destructiveness ; and I may state, that I 
am one of the number. I think it probable that 
both combativeness and destructiveness are general 
powers, communicating different kinds of energy to 
the mind, and giving rise to a delight in the exhibi- 
tion of power, physical or mental. I have else- 
where likened them to the steam required for the 



PROPENSITIES. 149 

working of the mental machinery, of which com- 

■hativeness may be considered as acting on the low 

pressure, and destructiveness on the high pressure 

principle. I merely state this as a supposition 

which is still to be tried and proved ; and much 

consideration and careful observation may be 

required to enable us to ascertain its truth or 

falsehood. 

" 7. Secretiveness. — Uses : Tendency to restrain 

within the mind the various emotions and ideas that 

involuntarily present themselves, until the judgment has 

approved of giving them utterance. It is simply the 

tendency to conceal, and is an ingredient in prudence. 

— Abuses : Cunnings deceit, duplicity, and lying." 

-" 8. Acquisitiveness. — Uses:- Desire to possess, 
and tendency to accumulate articles of utility, to provide 
against want. — Abuses: Inordinate desire of property, 
selfishness, avarice, theft." 

Note. This faculty has no reference either to providing 

against want, or appropriating w T hat. belongs to 

others. It seems to give rise to the feeling of 

property, and to the desire of acquiring, without 

reference to the means by which the acquisition is 

to be made, or the purposes to which it is to be 

applied ; and hence, it requires to be regulated by 

the sense of justice and other higher feelings, and 

by intellect. . 

" 9. GoNSTRUCTivENESs. — Uses : Desire to build 

-and construct works of art. — Abuses : Construction of 

engines to injure or destroy, and fabrication of objects 

to deceive mankind." 

Note. This faculty not only gives the desire, but the 

talent for constructing. Its organ lies between 

those of the propensities and lower intellectual 

faculties, and its function partakes of the nature of 

N 2 



150 SCHEME OF THE FACULTIES. 

both. In regard to the construction of engines to 
destroy, and objects to deceive, these are not abuses 
of constructiveness, but of other faculties which 
employ its powers for improper purposes. There 
may be an abuse of this faculty in the excessive 
indulgence of the tendency to construct for the 
mere pleasure which it affords, without a regard to 
utility, and spending time and money in executing 
laborious works, without end or object. 



" Genus II. SENTIMENTS. 

" L Sentiments common to Man with the Lower 
Animals" 

Note. It may be remarked, that it is only certain species 
of the lower animals which possess any of the senti- 
ments now to be mentioned. They should therefore 
be called, sentiments common to man, and some of 
the lower animals. 
"10. Self-esteem. — Uses: Self-respect, self-interest, 
love of independence, sense of personal dignity. — Abuses: 
Pride, disdain, overweening conceit, excessive selfishness, 
love of dominion. 

" 11. Love of approbation. — Uses: Desire of the 
esteem of others, love of praise, desire of fame or glory. — 
Abuses : Vanity, ambition, thirst for praise independently 
of praise-worthiness. 

"12. Cautiousness. — Uses: It gives origin to the 
sentiment of fear, the desire to shun danger, and circum- 
spection; and it is an ingredient in prudence. — Abuses: 
Excessive timidity, poltroonery, unfounded apprehen- 
sions, despondency, melancholy." 
Note. It may be added, that the gratification of thi* 



SENTIMENTS. 15 1 

faculty is the sense of security ; and that it gives 

rise to a high degree of pleasure, when we find 

ourselves completely surrounded by a defence which 

keeps all danger at a distance. 

" 13. Benevolence. — Uses : Desire of the happiness 

of others, universal charity, mildness of disposition, and 

a lively sympathy with the enjoyment of all animated 

beings. — Abuses : Profusion, injurious indulgence of the 

appetites and fancies of others, prodigality, facility of 

temper." 

Note, We may add to the uses of this feeling, compassion 
for the distressed, impelling us to use every exertion 
for the relief of suffering and sorrow ; hospitality 
and kindness to strangers. 

It may be mentioned here shortly, that though 
the faculties or feelings hitherto mentioned, are said 
to be common to man and some of the lower animals, 
they are in man so modified by his higher senti- 
ments and superior intellect, that they almost 
appear different feelings. This is particularly ob- 
servable in the sentiments just noticed, which 
have a totally different scope and range in man, 
from what they have in the animals. The love of 
approbation of the dog, for instance, has its highest 
aim and reward in the encouraging looks and 
gestures of his master. In man, it aims at univer- 
sal and never-dying fame. Benevolence, in animals, 
amounts to no more than passive meekness and 
good nature. In man, it excites a lively grief for 
the distresses of others, and the most energetic 
efforts for the relief of suffering. In all the feel- 
ings, even the lowest, it is not to be forgotten that, 
in man, they are human feelings, necessary and 
good in their legitimate sphere, and only leading to 



15*2 SCHEME OF THE FACULTIES. 

evil when they are abused by excess, or exercised 
in opposition to higher principles. 

" II. Sentiments proper to Man. 

" 14. Veneration. — Uses: Tendency to venerate 
or respect whatever is great and good ; gives origin to 
religious adoration. — Abuses : Senseless respect for un- 
worthy objects consecrated by time or situation, love of 
antiquated customs, abject subserviency to persons in 
authority, superstitious awe." 

Note. Mr Combe elsewhere mentions, that the highest 
object of this faculty is the Divine Being, and he 
assumes the existence of God as capable of demon- 
stration. I would add here, that this faculty has 
obviously been conferred upon man, to qualify him 
for some degree of intercourse with his Maker. It 
is not satisfied with that limited greatness and per- 
fection which is to be found even in the highest 
characters among men, which are never altogether 
without alloy, but leads us irresistibly, on the wings 
of contemplation, to a Being all-powerful, all-wise, 
and all-good. When the sentiment is powerful, 
it is not satisfied with a mere intellectual perception 
of these qualities, but seeks to pour forth its aspira- 
tions in prayer and praise. This is its proper and 
legitimate exercise, and affords at once its highest 
duty, and its highest gratification. 

To the abuses of the faculty mentioned by Mr 
. Combe, I would add, that it leads to. undue defer- 
ence to the opinions and reasonings of men who are 
fallible like ourselves — the worship of false gods, 
polytheism, paganism, idolatry. 
" 15. Firmness. — Uses: Determination, perseve- 



SENTIMENTS. 153 

ranee, steadiness of purpose. — Abuses : Stubbornness, 

infatuation, tenacity in evil." 

Note. This is one of the most important faculties we 
possess. It is indispensable to the attainment of 
every kind of excellence, physical, moral, and intel- 
lectual. Without perseverance or firmness of pur- 
pose, we cannot attain proficiency in any pursuit, 
either in the mechanic arts, or those connected with 
taste and imagination. The juggler who tosses up 
six balls in the air, and makes them perform circles 
round his head, and the violin player who entrances 
his audience with the concord of sweet sounds, only 
attain excellence in their respective walks, by the 
most intense perseverance directed for half a lifetime 
to an exclusive object. The same may be said of 
the scholar, the orator, or the actor. In short, the 
rule is universal. 

In morals, an individual possessing the best sen- 
timents of benevolence, conscientiousness, &c. will 
not act a uniformly consistent and truly moral part, 
unless with the aid of firmness, which enables him 
to withstand feelings of a different kind, that would 
withdraw him from his duty, and to do what is 
right in defiance of temptation. Firmness, when 
united to correct moral feeling in other respects, 
forms the mind to habits of virtue, and is then 
called moral principle, which is nothing else than 
the firm adherence to whatever we are once com- 
pletely satisfied is right and proper. Without this, 
let the other feelings be what they may, they will 
ever be the sport of accident; and the conduct 
being guided by the impulse of the moment, will 
be constantly liable to error. In every point of view, 
therefore, firmness may be said to deserve the pre- 
eminence which distinguishes the position of its 



154 SCHEME OF THE FACULTIES. 

organ in the head, as it is the crown and the 

consummation of all moral virtue. To one deficient 

in this quality, it may with truth be said, " Unstable 

as water, thou shalt not excel." . 

"16. Conscientiousness.— Uses: It gives origin 

to the sentiment of justice, or respect for the rights 

of others, openness to conviction, the love of truth. 

Abuses : Scrupulous adherence to noxious principles 

when ignorantly embraced, excessive refinement in 

views of duty and obligation, excess in remorse or 

self-condemnation." 

Note. It is necessary to keep in mind, that this senti- 
ment is different frOm conscience, which means the 
general power of -moral judgment, resulting" from 
the whole faculties in combination. The proper 
function of this faculty is the sense of justice. It 
seems to desire justice in the abstract, both to others 
and to ourselves. It leads us to do justice to others 
certainly; but it also leads us to expect just treat- 
ment in return. When we are treated with injus^ 
tice, it gives rise to a feeling of resentment, not 
from selfishness, not on our own account, but on 
account of the breach of the rules of just dealing; 
although sometimes we may be quicker to see injus- 
tice done to ourselves, than where rt only affects 
others. In the different relations of life it gives 
rise to the feeling of duty, and to the reciprocal 
feeling of right : to the feeling of gratitude for 
favours, and resentment for injuries ; to the feeling 
of equity in deciding questions as to property ; to 
the desire of rewarding good and punishing bad 
actions. When united with firmness, it forms the 
character of the man, "Justus et teriax prepositi," 
and the sentiment may then be described in the 
words of the definition given of justice in the 



SENTIMENTS. 155 

Roman law, " Constans et perpetua voluntas jus 

suum cuique tribuendi" 

" 17. Hope. — Uses : Tendency to expect future good: 

It cherishes faith. — Abuses: Credulity with respect to 

the attainment of what is desired, absurd expectations 

of felicity not founded on reason." 

■Note. Hope is the grand sweetener of human life. It 
adheres to us in all circumstances, even the most 
disastrous. In poverty and distress ; amidst priva- 
tion, suffering, and sorrow, hope still paints the 
future in bright and cheering colours. Nor is the 
feeling confined to the events of the present life, 

" Hope travels through, nor quits us when we die." 
It undoubtedly "-points to an hereafter;" and 
we cannot believe that a feeling so strong — so 
decided — so unbounded in its aspirations, would 
have been conferred upon man, had he not been 
intended for a greater scene after his present limited 
existence is closed. It " cherishes faith" in the 
promises contained in the Scriptures, as the pros- 
pects which these open to us are exactly suited to 
gratify its longings. These views of the nature and 
uses of hope lead to important practical conse- 
quences, which do not enter into Mr Combe's 
system, but which are essential to a true and accu- 
rate view of the nature of man, of his future 
prospects, and of the whole circumstances in which 
he is placed. 
18. "Wonder. — Uses: The desire of novelty; 
admiration of the new, the unexpected, the grand, the 
wonderful, and extraordinary. — Abuses: Love of the 
marvellous and occult ; senseless astonishment ; belief 
in false miracles, in prodigies, magic, ghosts, and other 
supernatural absurdities. Note. — Veneration, hope, 



156 SCHEME OF THE FACULTIES. 

and wonder combined, give the tendency to religion ; 

their abuses produce superstition." 

Note, The object of the faculty of wonder, seems to be 
the mysterious, — those things which our faculties do 
not enable us perfectly to comprehend. One of its 
principal uses seems to be to stimulate curiosity, 
and to excite us to use our faculties for the dis- 
covery of truth ; and although, with regard to any 
single point, the feeling ceases as soon as that 
curiosity is perfectly gratified, there never are 
awanting fresh objects to awaken it anew. Those 
who know most, are only the more sensible how 
much remains behind, which their researches have 
not yet enabled them to reach, and this, it is probable, 
must be true of the highest created intelligence. 

If this be the case in the physical, it is still more 
so in the moral world. We know something of the 
various faculties of our minds, but we know nothing 
of the mind itself, its nature and essence, or of the 
connection between it and the body ; or of the 
nature of that great and mysterious Being who 
formed us, the world, and all that it contains, 
animate and inanimate. These must ever remain 
to man, though raised to the highest perfection of 
his nature, objects of mystery and wonder; nay, the 
more he knows, the mystery will only appear the 
greater, and the wonder be raised the higher. 
Instead of being the offspring and the accompani- 
ment of ignorance, wonder is felt most intensely by 
those who know the most. The ignorant survey 
the starry heavens without any feeling of wonder. 
To the astronomer, who is aware of the nature and 
extent of the objects which are there presented, 
these afford a subject of endless wonder. 



SENTIMENTS. 157 

" 19. Ideality.- — Uses: Love of the beautiful and 
splendid, desire of excellence, poetic feeling. Abuses : 
Extravagant and absurd enthusiasm ; preference of the 
showy and glaring to the solid and useful ; a tendency to 
dwell in the regions of fancy, and to neglect the duties of 
life." 

It does not seem necessary, in connection with 
the subject of this work, to add any thing to the 
above description of ideality. 
" 20. Wit. — Gives the feeling of the ludicrous, and 
disposes to mirth." 

Note. It may be doubted if this is properly to be con- 
sidered as a sentiment. I am of opinion, that it is 
an intellectual faculty, the function of which is the 
perception of contrast and incongruity ; and that the 
feeling of the ludicrous does not arise from it alone, 
but from a combination of it with other faculties. 
Spurzheim at first considered it as belonging to the 
intellect, and the situation of the or^an in the head 
favours that opinion. There can be no doubt, that 
the faculty which disposes us to view things in a 
ridiculous light, is of use in some kinds of reasoning. 
Nothing is considered as more purely a matter of 
intellect than mathematics ; and we know that in 
this study, cases frequently occur where a truth can 
only be proved by a reductio ad absurdum. 

The abuses of this faculty are many. It gives 

rise, when improperly used, to scoffing at things 

sacred and venerable, and ridiculing all that is good 

and praiseworthy.* 

"21. Imitation. — Copies the manners, gestures, and 

actions of others, and appearances in nature generally." 

Note. This should have been stated as a faculty common 

* See an Essay on " Wit, and the Feeling of the Ludicrous." — Plireno- 
logical Journal, vol. iv. p. 195. 

O 



158 SCHEME OF THE FACULTIES. 

to man with some of the lower animals. It is pos- 
sessed by all the monkey tribes, and by several kinds 
of birds, as parrots, starlings, the mocking bird, 
and various others. It is also a talent, and may 
be considered as in some respects an intellectual 
faculty. 

Mr Combe does not state the uses and abuses of 
this faculty. It is of the greatest use in education. 
The young are, for the most part, creatures of 
imitation, and are naturally led by this tendency to 
copy the manners, behaviour, tones, and actions of 
those around them, and they thus acquire many 
habits which it would be extremely difficult for 
them to learn in any other way. " Example," 
according to the proverb, " is better (or more 
effectual) than precept;" a truth which is generally 
admitted, though we seldom consider how far the 
principle extends, or how much we really learn by 
pure imitation. It is by imitating, or mimicking 
the speech of others, that we first learn to speak. 
Writing is learnt in the same way ; so are music, 
dancing, drawing, and almost every other accom- 
plishment. After we have got over the first steps 
of our progress, much may, no doubt, be done by 
nature, genius, and inborn talent; but in the first 
steps themselves, we are invariably assisted by 
imitation. 

In those who possess a higher endowment of the 
faculty than is common, it may be exercised for 
amusement, or merely to shew the perfection to 
which it may be carried. In this way, it is useful to 
actors, professed mimics, ventriloquists, and others 
who exhibit their talents in public. In private life, 
however, mimicry, unless when kept under control 
by great prudence, is extremely apt to offend those 



INTELLECTUAL FACULTIES. 159 

who are the objects of it, and is greatly liable to 
abuse, especially when joined with a taste for the 
ludicrous. 



"ORDER II.— INTELLECTUAL FACULTIES. 

. " Genus I. — -External Senses. 
" Feeling, or Touch ; Taste ; Smell ; Hearing ; 
Sight.-^- Uses : To bring man into communication with 
external objects, and to enable him to enjoy them. — 
Abuses : Excessive indulgence in the pleasures arising 
from the senses* to the extent of impairing bodily health, 
and debilitating or deteriorating the mind." 



"Genus II.— Observing and knowing Faculties, 
which perceive the existence of external 

OBJECTS." 

" 22. Individuality. — Takes cognizance of existence 

and simple facts." 

Note, I have stated my views as to this faculty at some 
length, in a paper published in the Phrenological 
Journal.* It seems to combine the information 
afforded by the senses and the lower observing 
powers now to be noticed, and to form from thence 
distinct conceptions of individual objects. It corres- 
ponds nearly with what Dr Thomas Brown terms 
the power of comprehension. All individual objects 
are made up of parts, and of an aggregate of com- 
pound qualities. When we comprehend these, and 
view them as united in one object, we have a proper 
idea of an individual. 
" 23. Form. — Renders man observant of form." 

Note. This faculty observes the relations of form, — 
* Vol. v. p. 226. 



160 SCHEME OF THE 

form itself being nothing but a relation. It gives 
the power of recollecting faces and persons, written 
characters, and forms in general. It is probable 
that it perceives and gives rise to the love of sym- 
metry, or regularity in forms. 
" 24. Size. — Gives the idea of space, and enables us 
to appreciate size and distance." 

Note, I would again say here, that this faculty observes 
the relations of space, — space as extended all around 
us. It gives a feeling of externality, or what Dr 
T. Brown calls outness. It gives the perception 
of perspective. 
"25. Weight. — Communicates the perception of 
momentum, weight, and resistance; and aids equili- 
brium." 

Note. It observes the relations of resistance, and mechanic 
forces generally ; weight and momentum being only 
particular examples of such forces. It compares 
and judges of their relative strength. It does more 
than aid equilibrium, being the only source from 
which we derive the feeling. Equilibrium is the 
balancing of equal weights or forces, and is, there- 
fore, just one mode of exercising the faculty which 
perceives weight or force. It is employed and 
gratified in walking, riding, dancing, and all other 
bodily exercises. 
" 26. Colouring. — Gives perception of colours and 
their harmonies." 

Note. Gall calls this the sense of the relations of colours, 
which he supposes to be distinct from the simple 
power of seeing or perceiving colours. He supposes 
it to be a talent peculiar to man. It inspires the 
love of colours, and is the foundation of the art of 
colouring in a painter. 



INTELLECTUAL FACULTIES. 161 

Genus III. — Knowing Faculties, which perceive 

THE RELATIONS OF EXTERNAL OBJECTS. 

" 27. Locality. — Gives the idea of relative position." 

Note. If Dr Gall's observations on this faculty are 
correct, it comprehends a great deal more than this. 
He seems to consider it as the faculty of travelling, 
the power or ability to find our way to any place 
or object we have a desire to reach. It gives the 
power of directing our course, either when there 
are no landmarks, or in paths the most intricate 
and perplexed. It enables us to recollect the points 
of the compass, and to regulate our motions accor- 
dingly (s'orienter.) It is not merely a faculty, but 
a feeling, inspiring the love of travelling, which in 
some persons amounts to a passion. It is possessed 
in a high degree by certain animals. 
" 28. Number. — Gives the talent for calculation." 

Note. This is a power peculiar to man. None of the 
lower animals appear to possess it in any degree. 
It is of immense use in the affairs of life, and in 
many scientific pursuits. It is the foundation of an 
important part of mathematical science. 
" 29. Order. — Communicates the love of physical 

arrangement." 

Note. It appears to give the love of arrangement in 
space, and of regularity in time. Persons in whom 
the faculty is strong, love to have every thing done 
in its proper time, and kept in its proper place. 
Their actions seem as if regulated by clock-work. 
There seems no reason to think that any of the 
lower animals possess a general faculty of this kind, 
though some of them have particular instincts akin 
to it. 

o2 



162 SCHEME OF THE 

"30. Eventuality. — Takes cognizance of occur- 
rences or events." 

Note. This may be called the historical or narrative 
faculty. It is nearly connected with individuality. 
This last observes objects as they exist in space ; 
eventuality takes notice of changes or events as they 
follow one another in the order of time. 
"31. Time. — Gives rise to the perception of dura- 
tion." 

Note. Perhaps it would be more correct to say, that it 
is the faculty which gives rise to the feeling of 
duration, and enables us to divide it into larger and 
smaller portions. It may be observed, that duration 
is nothing of itself, but permanence or continuance 
. of existence ; and that all our measures of duration 
are derived from motion, continued and uniform 
motion, as the motion of a pendulum or clock — the 
motion of the earth round its axis — the apparent 
motions of the heavenly bodies. It may, therefore, 
be questioned whether this is not the faculty for 
observing motion, which, when exercised with 
memory, may give rise to the feeling of duration. 
This feeling certainly exists, and however it arises, 
of course it includes a perception of musical time, 
or rhythm, which is nothing more than a sense of 
the relations of very small portions of duration. 
"32. Tune. — The sense of melody and harmony 
arise from it." * 

Note. This faculty is the sense of the relations of musical 
tones. Combined with time, it gives the talent 
for music. 
" 33. Language. — Gives facility in acquiring a know- 

* This is a faculty sui generis, and should hare been placed in a divi- 
sion by itself. It certainly has nothing to do with " observing the 
relations of external objects." 



INTELLECTUAL FACULTIES. 163 

ledge of arbitrary signs to express thoughts : readiness 

in the use of them, and the power of inventing and 

recollecting them." * 

Note. Dr Gall supposed that there are two faculties 
connected with language, one giving the power of 
forming and recollecting articulate sounds or words, 
being equivalent to what metaphysicians have called 
verbal memory ; the other, the power of associating 
these, or any other arbitrary signs, with the ideas 
they are intended to represent, and of combining 
them with facility so as to express our meaning, 
These two qualities are not always found together ; 
and therefore it is probable that Gall's opinion is 
correct, and that they are really separate faculties. 
The former of them, the power of forming articulate 
sounds, is possessed by several of the feathered 
tribes, as parrots, mocking birds, &c. Some idiots 
are known to possess it in great perfection, who are 
quite incapable of understanding the words they 
repeat. The latter, or the power of associating 
arbitrary signs with ideas, is certainly possessed in 
some degree by dogs, and other sagacious animalf, 
who are often seen to understand what is said to 
them by their masters and keepers. Man alone 
possesses both these qualities, and therefore he alone 
enjoys the gift of articulate or spoken language. 
The uses and abuses of the faculty are too well 
known to require description. 

Genus IV. — Reflecting Faculties, which compare,. 

JUDGE, AND .DISCRIMINATE* 

" 34. Comparison. — Gives the power of discovering 
analogies, resemblances, and differences." 

* The same may be said of this faculty as of Tune. 



164 SCHEME OE THE 

Xote. Although this faculty may give the power of 
perceiving differences, or of perceiving where there 
is a want of resemblance; its original and proper 
function is to discover resemblances and analogies. 
It perceives differences just as the faculty of tune 
perceives discords, or a want of harmony. Re 
blance is its proper object, and that which affords 
it its gratification. Persons in whom this fact: 
predominant, delight in analogies and resemblances, 
and make constant use of them in illustrating their 
ideas. If they are authors, their works are filled 
with similes, metaphors, and comparisons of resem- 
blance. Parables, apologues, fables, and allegories, 
are their favourite methods of conveying instruction, 
all of which are dependent on the power of per- 
ceiving analogies and similitudes. The lang 
expressive of mental qualities is in its origin entirely 
metaphorical, and consequently dependent on the 
same power. This subject is of great extent, and 
would require more consideration than has hitherto 
been bestowed upon it. * 
•-So. Causality Traces the dependences of phe- 
nomena, and the relation of cause and effect." 
Note. This faculty seems to observe the relations of 
fitness, adaptation, and proportion, from which we 
infer the connection between cause and effect. 

As I have stated that I consider wit to be an 
intellectual faculty, and not merelv a feeling of the 
ludicrous, I would place it in this division. The 
feeling of the ludicrous undoubtedly arises from a 
certain mode of comparing ideas : and as comparison 
is understood to compare with a view to discovering 
resemblances and analogies, and causality compares 

" See m Essay on the Faculty of Comparison, by the author of this 
work, PkrenolooicalJournal, vol. iv. p. 319. 



INTELLECTUAL FACULTIES. 165 

with the view of tracing close and intimate connec- 
tion, fitness, and proportion, so wit seems to compare 
with the view of discovering contrasts and incon- 
gruities,— relations the very opposite to those which 
are observed by comparison and causality. I have 
explained my ideas on this subject elsewhere, and 
cannot here enter into details which have no con- 
nection with the object of the present work. 

I have now gone over Mr Combe's entire list of the 
faculties, adding what I think he has omitted in his 
account of their functions, and mentioning shortly any 
points on which I differ from him, and the grounds upon 
which I do so. I shall now present the reader with 
another general view of the subject, and with some 
observations respecting the connection of the different 
faculties, which appear to me to possess considerable 
interest. 

In the first place, I beg to state, that although, for 
the sake of convenience, I have hitherto followed -Mr 
Combe's classification of the faculties, as divided into 
propensities, sentiments, and intellectual faculties, and 
these subdivided into ether species, I consider this 
classification to be very imperfect, and calculated in 
many respects to mislead those who are not very 
thoroughly conversant with the science. Indeed, it 
appears to me that it is impossible to give a perfectly 
accurate view of the faculties in a tabular form. 

Observation shews that each faculty is connected with 
a particular portion of the brain, which must be con- 
sidered as the organ through which it manifests itself 
during life. These organs do not lie in such an order 
as to enable us to take them up seriatim, and divide 
them into orders, classes, and sections. They lie rather 
in groupes and clusters, their situation in the head 



166 POSITION AND GROUPING 

corresponding in a remarkable manner with their 
relative uses. These groupes are in many cases not 
separated by distinct boundaries, but, like the colours of 
the rainbow, the tints of the sky, the species and genera 
of plants and animals, are connected with, and run into 
one another by imperceptible gradations, so that we can 
hardly tell where one class ends, and another begins. 
Thus, although, speaking generally, we find that the 
organs of the intellectual faculties occupy the forehead ; 
those of the lower, or what may be called the animal 
propensities, the inferior and posterior parts of the 
brain; while those connected with the moral and con- 
trolling powers are found in the top or crown of the 
head ; yet several cases occur, where we have great 
difficulty in determining, or rather, where we cannot 
positively determine, whether a faculty belongs, to one 
class or another. I have already mentioned some cases, 
such as constructiveness and imitation, where this doubt 
occurs ; and there are others which will present them- 
selves on a farther view. 

I may here refer to a little work which I published 
anonymously fourteen years ago, * in which I pointed 
out in detail this grouping or clustering of the organs, 
and the apparent propriety that seemed to have dictated 
the mode of their distribution. It may not be improper 
here to point this out very shortly. 

At the base and hinder part of the head, we find in 
the cerebellum, the organ of Amativeness or physical 
love. Above it, we find an organ specially directed to 
the love and the care of our offspring. Immediately 
adjoining to this, and on each side of it, are the organs 
appropriated to Adhesiveness, the propensity of attach- 
ment in general, leading, when united to the sexual 

* Observations on Phrenology, as affording a systematic view of 
human nature. Edin. 1822. Pp. 57. 



OF THE CEREBRAL ORGANS. 167 

feeling, to the institution of marriage. Above, there is 
the organ which, whatever may be its precise sphere of 
activity, certainly comprehends among its functions the 
feeling of attachment to home ; next to which, and 
higher in the head, w r e find Self-esteem, leading to that 
regard to ourselves which is necessary for securing 
individual preservation and comfort. " We here see 
the love of home surrounded by the love of self, and of 
those objects w T hich are nearest ourselves, as wife and 
children, forming altogether a group which may be 
denominated the domestic affections, the very names of 
which must give rise to feelings that are dear to every 
heart. We observe, too, that this group of affections is 
surrounded and embraced, as it were, by the combative 
and destructive powers and Cautiousness, indicating that 
these powers are best employed in preserving and 
defending the objects of our kind affections."* 

The first command given to man after his creation, 
was to " increase, and multiply, and replenish the 
earth ;" and the next w^as to " subdue it." We have 
mentioned the propensities which tend to accomplish 
the first of these objects. We now come to such as 
have reference to the second. 

We may first mention Combatlveness, which gives the 
disposition to oppose aggression, to struggle against and 
overcome difficulties ; and De struct iveness, which enables 
us, without remorse, to destroy, to break, to rend, and 
reduce to fragments inanimate objects, and to kill living 
animals, when such destruction is necessary for the pro- 
curing of food, or materials for other purposes. What- 
ever may have been the use of such faculties at the 
period immediately succeeding the creation, before the 
flesh of animals was required for food, there can be no 
doubt that now these faculties are legitimately employed 
* Observations on Phrenology, p. 16. 



168 POSITION AND GROUPING 

in hunting, killing, or otherwise destroying, noxious 
animals, or those which are required for our daily 
nourishment. " For pursuing his game with success, 
it is necessary that the hunter use secrecy and caution, 
the one to enable him to surprise his prey, the other to 
avoid danger. Accordingly, next the destructive organ, 
and also adjoining the combative, lies Secretiveness, 
leading to slyness, cunning, and stratagem. Above that, 
and still bordering on combativeness, is the organ of 
Cautiousness, the use of which is most obvious, both as 
tending to control the combative and destructive pro- 
pensities, and to prevent us, in the eager indulgence of 
them, to run headlong into danger and to death."* 

These, which may be called the savage propensities 
of our nature, are common to us with the beasts of prey, 
who hunt, surprise, and destroy their game nearly in 
the same manner as man. Low as they may be ranked in 
the scale of our faculties, they are not merely necessary 
to the existence, but, in a certain extent, to the great- 
ness and power of the human race. Without them man 
could neither have acquired nor preserved that supe- 
riority which was bestowed on him at his creation, when 
dominion was given him over all the other creatures. 

To exalt the profession of arms, and to supply those 
feelings so dazzling to the imagination of youth, of the 
" pomp and circumstance of war," we have Love of 
approbation and Ideality ; the one lying above Cautious- 
ness, and the other before it. These propensities, joined 
to Self-esteem and Firmness, supply the qualities of the 
hero of antiquity; of an Achilles " impiger, iracundus, 
inexorabilis, acer ;" but to form a true hero, one who 
fights, " pro aris et focis," in defence of his country, 
its independence, its liberties, its laws, and its religion, 
there are required, in addition to these, all the moral 
sentiments in their highest exercise. 

* Observations on Phrenology, p. 17. 



OF THE CEREBRAL ORGANS. 169 

Advancing towards the front, we find, next the 
destructive faculty, Acquisitiveness , giving the sense and 
the desire of property ; and before it, in contact with 
the organs of the intellect, Constructiveness, or the desire 
and the faculty of using the productions of the earth in 
forming new combinations, either for use or ornament, 
in framing habitations more convenient than the dens 
and caves of the earth, and garments more comfortable 
than the skins of beasts. 

These two faculties lead to various results. They 
incite to exertion — they promote industry. They raise 
man from the hunter state to that of the shepherd; from 
that to the agricultural, manufacturing, and commercial. 
Number and Order lie next, for this obvious reason, that 
without the one we would not know the amount of our 
possessions; without the other, the greatest accumulation 
of wealth would be nearly useless, and little better than 
splendid lumber. Lastly, to impart to riches elegance 
as well as comfort, and to give us ideas of magnificence 
and splendour, there is placed immediately above these 
two organs Ideality, which includes the love of what is 
great or beautiful. It is this faculty which raises the 
precious metals to something more than glittering dross, 
gives to the sparkling gem its brightest lustre, and con- 
fers an importance on personal decoration, which even 
heightens the effect of female beauty, and the awe and 
majesty which belong to kings. 

We have now examined three groups or systems of 
faculties, respectively connected with the Amative and 
Adhesive, — the Combative and Destructive, — and the 
Acquisitive and Constructive propensities. The first of 
these may be called the social, and the second the war- 
like, and the third the industrial group. We have seen 
how these are successively manifested in the history of 
the species ; we may add, they seem to be developed in 

p 



170 POSITION AND GROUPING 

a like order in the history of the individual, — youth, as 
we have been told, being devoted to love — middle age 
to ambition — old age to avarice.* Shakespeare has the 
same idea, nearly, in his Seven Ages, where, imme- 
diately after the schoolboy, we have the lover " sighing 
like furnace," — then the soldier, — 

Jealous in honour, sudden and quick in quarrel, 
Seeking the bubble reputation 
Even in the cannon's mouth, — 

And afterwards the 

Slipper 'd pantaloon, with youthful hose well saved. 

Proceeding now to the front, we find, around and above 
the orbits of the eyes, a set of faculties which furnish 
perceptions and conceptions of sensible qualities, namely, 
Form, Size, Weight, and Colour. These, with Order 
and Number, are peculiarly adapted for the mechanical 
and useful arts. They lie almost in a line tending from 
the junction between the forehead and nose on both sides 
towards the temples, and terminate in Constructiveness, 
as if indicating their proper end and purpose. Higher 
faculties are no doubt necessary for bringing the arts to 
perfection, but dexterity of execution in the operative 
department of art depends entirely on these inferior 
powers. 

Returning again to the front, we have another set of 
faculties, between the mechanical faculties below, and the 
higher intellectual powers above, the organs appropriated 
to the purposes of the fine arts. And first, in the centre, 
we find the organ of Form, which, aided by Size and 
Constructiveness, and under the guidance of superior 
faculties, leads to the arts of statuary and architecture. 

Near these, lies the organ of Colouring, which, with 

, * Vision of human life in the Tatler. 



OF THE CEREBRAL ORGANS. 171 

the other faculties above mentioned, produces the art of 
painting. 

Beyond these lie the organs of Time and Tune, 
forming the foundation of all the delights of music. 

Last, and highest in the scale, lies Ideality, the love of 
all that is great, beautiful, and perfect, — the origin of 
divine poesy. 

The organs that have been mentioned are not only 
essential to the arts, but afford the basis of several of the 
most useful sciences. 

The forms and colours of the stems, leaves, calyx, 
corolla, stamens, pistils, and other parts of the plant, 
their relative sizes, their number, and the order or physical 
arrangement in which they occur, — these afford the 
means of botanical classification, and are the foundation 
of the science of botany. 

In chemistry, every different substance is compounded, 
or combines with others, in certain proportions of 
weight and volume, the proportions being ascertained by 
number. 

The objects of mechanical science, including mechanics 
proper, hydrostatics, hydraulics, astronomy, are all in- 
cluded under form, and size, and weight, and time or 
motion, and the relations or proportions of these are all 
capable of being measured or calculated by number. 

In the higher mathematics, signs are substituted for 
numbers, and the intermediate steps of the process of 
calculation being gone through by their means, the 
results may be reduced to numbers again, when this is 
required for practical purposes. 

Above the organs appropriated to the arts, and to 
chemical and mechanical science, lie those of the know- 
ing faculties. These are Individuality, which takes 
cognizance of objects, and Eventuality, which has regard 
to occurrences and events. Objects are distinguished 



172 POSITION AND GROUPING 

by their respective forms, sizes, weight, colour, for the 
observation of each of which there is a separate faculty. 
Individuality takes up the separate items of information 
afforded by these, and combines the whole into the per- 
ception of an individual object. Events are distinguished 
as they occur in time and place, in order or in number, 
and these particulars, or items of information, are taken 
up by Eventuality, and combined into the conception of 
an event. In both, the matter conceived or appre- 
hended of, is a complex one, including a variety of 
particulars ; and when these are all fully understood, we 
are said to comprehend them. At one time, these two 
faculties, or rather these organs, were termed the higher 
and lower Individuality, — a name which may still be 
retained, even though we admit the functions to be as 
here stated, — the one taking cognizance of individual 
objects, the other of individual events ; the one regarding 
things as they exist in space, and the other as they exist 
in time. The position of the two organs favours this 
supposition, the first resting upon and between the 
organs of Locality, and the latter being in_ contact, on 
each side, with the organ of Time. 

The situation of the organs of these two faculties, 
giving the memory of facts and events, corresponds most 
remarkably with what metaphysicians have observed of 
those principles of association, by which past objects and 
events are brought to our recollection. The principal 
of those associating links which aid the memory, and 
assist in recalling ideas to the mind, are contiguity of 
time and place, resemblance and contrast, and the relation 
of cause and effect. Accordingly, we find these organs of 
Individuality and Eventuality absolutely surrounded on all 
sides, by those of Locality and Time ; Comparison, which 
observes resemblance ; Wit, which observes contrasts ; and 
Causality, which takes cognizance of causes and effects. 



OF THE CEREBRAL ORGANS. 173 

This coincidence has long struck me as very remarkable, 
if not, indeed, the most remarkable that occurs in regard 
to the position of the organs. 

The organs of the three reflecting faculties, as they 
have been called, lie at the top of the forehead, in the 
precise order that is most fit, — Comparison, which dis- 
covers relations of resemblance, as being the most impor- 
tant, being placed in the midst. Upon this faculty 
depends the formation of abstract ideas, and the origi- 
nating of all terms expressive of mental qualities.* On 
each side of this lies Causality, which discovers the rela- 
tions of proportion and fitness, from which we infer cause 
and effect. Beyond this lie the organs of Witj the faculty 
which perceives and delights in strong contrasts and 
violent incongruities; and beyond these, and behind 
them, on each side, the organs of Ideality, a faculty 
which takes cognizance of relations the most refined and 
subtle of all, giving rise to that most mysterious and 
undefinable of all qualities, Beauty. 

Above, and touching upon Comparison, and on each 
side of the organ of Benevolence, lie the organs of Imita- 
tion, which we have mentioned to partake both of the 
nature of a feeling and an intellectual faculty. Its posi- 
tion seems well adapted to its function, the faculty which 
leads to imitating or forming resemblances being fitly 
placed beside that which gives ideas of resemblance. Next 
this, and adjoining to the organ of Causality, lies that of 
Wonder, the position of which seems no less proper. 
Causality leads to knowledge of those things most 
removed from our senses ; knowledge which does not 
come to us directly, but by a process of reasoning, but 
which may, nevertheless, be perfect in its kind. But 
the object of Wonder is not perfect knowledge, but 

* See Essay on Comparison before mentioned, also Dr Thomas 
Brown's Lecture on the Feeling of Resemblance. 
2 p 



174 POSITION AND GROUPING 

imperfect, or, as Lord Bacon calls it, "broken knowledge" 
where sense, and even reason fail us, — at once inviting 
and checking our curiosity, and leaving us standing as 
it were on the brink of a flood, of which the most per- 
spicacious ken cannot discern the farther side. 

We are thus arrived at the utmost bounds of reason, 
beyond which intellect cannot penetrate, and where we 
feel sensible of all the weakness and ignorance of our 
nature. But in contemplating what lies beyond, two 
feelings seem especially called into action, — Hope and 
Fear. And so it is, that the organs of these feelings lie 
in a line behind and adjoining that of Wonder, the first 
holding, as it deserves, the more eminent place. Imme- 
diately behind Wonder, lies the organ of Hope, leading 
us to paint the future and unknown with the gayest and 
most flattering colours, in which it is aided by Ideality, 
lying immediately below it. But as if to keep these 
feelings in check, and to prevent us indulging too much 
in dreams of bliss which may never be realized, there lies 
behind the organ of Caution, whose office it is to warn 
against possible evil, to suggest doubts and difficulties, 
to repress presumption, and even, when apparent danger 
presses closely, to inspire the most lively feelings of fear 
and terror. 

We thus have seen, on carefully considering the 
grouping of the faculties, that there is no hard defined 
boundary between intellectual faculties and feelings, but 
that the former are shaded into the latter by nice and 
almost imperceptible gradations. 

We now come to the coronal surface, where we find 
a group of faculties or feelings the highest of all, forming 
the proper distinctive character of man, and placing it 
at an infinite height above that of the highest of the 
brutes. 

First, in the front, and in the medial line, as indicating 



OF THE CEREBRAL ORGANS. 175 

its superior nature, lies the organ of Benevolence, leading 
us, as we have seen, to desire the happiness of others. It 
is placed immediately above, and in contact with, the 
organs of the intellect, as intimating that the intellectual 
powers ought ever to be used for promoting the good 
of our fellow-creatures. 

Adjoining to Benevolence, or the social principle, 
leading to the love of and a regard to the welfare of all 
mankind, and including a merciful disposition to the 
brute creation, we find, next behind it in the medial 
line, the organ of Veneration, inspiring deference to our 
superiors, subjection to our parents, loyalty to our sove- 
reign and those in authority, and religions awe and 
piety towards the Supreme Being. This principle forms 
the groundwork of all our most sacred institutions, of 
all government, and of all religion. This feeling, if 
strong, as it is in all the highest characters, might per- 
haps prove too overwhelming, and lead to an undue 
prostration of the faculties, were it not supported behind 
by Firmness and Self-esteem, and on each side by Hope, 
the first two producing confidence in ourselves, the latter 
trust in our good fortune, and in the Divine goodness 
and mercy. 

Farther back, immediately behind the organ of Hope, 
we find Conscientiousness, giving rise to the feelings of 
justice and equity, lying between Firmness and Cautious- 
ness, which are exactly the feelings most necessary to 
regulate its movements. Caution is, of all others, most 
important to be attended to in deciding as to what is 
just ; but after the decision is formed on proper grounds, 
the most inflexible firmness is necessary to carry that 
decision into execution. 

Conscientiousness is well placed in another respect, 
lying as it does half way between the love of self, and 
the objects connected with self, — Veneration, which 



176 POSITION AND GROUPING 

produces respect to our superiors, and a supreme love 
and regard to the Creator, — and Benevolence, which leads 
to the love of our neighbour. When united and combined 
with these different feelings, it converts what was before 
simple inclination into binding duty : and thus it points 
to three different classes of duties, — the duties we owe 
to ourselves and gut families, the duties we owe to God 
and to civil magistrates, and the duties we owe to our 
fellow-men and fellow-subjects. These it is the province 
of the moralist and the divine to point out, and to enforce 
with their proper sanctions. 

The organ of Self-esteem, though placed behind these, 
as inferior in dignity, must still be considered of high 
importance, and is indispensable to the perfection of the 
human character. When properly directed by intellect 
and conscientiousness, it may undoubtedly be considered 
a moral feeling, and many cases occur where it materially 
aids in preserving us from mean and improper actions. 
It would, however, be apt to become excessive and per- 
nicious, were it not accompanied on each side by the 
Love of approbation, which renders us amenable to the 
opinion of others ; and had it not adjoining it the organs 
of the domestic and kindly affections, embracing those 
whose good opinion we would most wish to preserve : all 
tending to modify and soften down any overweening 
conceit of ourselves, and preserve it within the bounds 
of propriety. 

Then, to give the character consistency and power, 
and to prevent our actions and purposes from being the 
sport of every passing emotion, there lies at the top of 
the head the organ of Firmness, giving, as we have seen, 
constancy to persevere in our undertakings, resolution to 
face danger and difficulty, patience to endure suffering : 
which gives the power to resolve, supplies the deter- 
mined will to do what is right, and converts what would 



OF THE CEREBRAL ORGANS. 177 

otherwise be mere feeling into steadfast moral 'principle. 
This is the faculty which binds together and gives 
solidity and consistency to the whole character, of which 
the other sentiments and faculties compose the separate 
parts. It is, therefore, one of the most important of the 
faculties, being, in fact, the keystone of the arch which 
keeps all the rest in their places. 

I have hitherto taken no notice, in this arrangement, 
of the faculties of words and of Language. The organs 
appropriated to these faculties lie at the base of the brain 
in front, behind and above the orbits of the eyes, forming 
the inferior roof of that vault, the upper part of which 
is occupied by the organs of the intellectual faculties. 
As all conventional signs consist of some modification of 
sound or form, and as language consequently depends 
in the first instance on the faculties which perceive these 
qualities, its organ is naturally placed in contact with 
those of Form and Tune. But there is another reason for 
its being placed where it is, namely, that from this posi- 
tion it communicates with the organs of the observing, 
knowing, comparing, reasoning, and imaginative facul- 
ties, indicating distinctly the union of all the intellectual 
powers requisite to the perfection of that rarest and most 
splendid of human endowments, the gift of eloquence. 

These are all the faculties generally recognized by 
phrenologists, and of which the organs have been dis- 
covered to lie in the exterior convolutions of the brain ; 
but there seems to be something more necessary to afford 
a complete view of the mental system. Man possesses, 
besides these, Consciousness, by which he is enabled to 
perceive and reflect upon the feelings and operations, or 
states of mind produced by the activity of these organs, 
and by which also he is conscious that he remains the 
same individual from day to day and from year to year, 
notwithstanding all the changes that take place both in 



178 GENERAL REMARKS 

his bodily organs and his mental capacities. Mr Combe 
alludes to this in his System of Phrenology,* and states 
that it is " extremely difficult to determine whether the 
consciousness of personal identity is connected with a 
particular organ, or is the result of the general action of 
the whole." It is impossible to discuss the point here 
fully, but the following is generally understood by 
Phrenologists to be the true explanation of the matter : 
That the living and conscious principle which we call 
Self, or let us say at once the Soul, is a simple and 
indivisible being, of which the brain is the organ during 
life; that what we call faculties are merely different states 
of this simple being ; that the separate organs of the 
brain afford the means by which these states of mind 
are induced and manifested ; that consciousness is not 
to be considered an attribute of each faculty, but only 
an attribute of the mind itself, of which the faculties 
are the different states. This view of the matter 
entirely relieves Phrenology from the imputation of its 
leading to Materialism, to which it is no more liable 
than any other system admitting the brain to be the 
organ of the mind. It is also a strong confirmation of 
this view, and of the soul being a simple and uncom- 
pounded substance, that Consciousness is always the 
same, and always single. Whatever faculties are active, 
we have the feeling that they belong to the mind, but 
are not the mind ; that the living principle, Self would 
remain the same, though one or more of our faculties 
were dormant or lost, or though we were to acquire 
new ones, just as we remain the same individual though 
we become blind or deaf, or though we acquire the gift 
of sight by the operation of couching for cataract. 

With this explanation, the system of faculties seems to 
account satisfactorily for all the mental phenomena. 

* System of Phrenology, by George Combe. Second edition, p. 402. 



ON THE SYSTEM. 179 

To return to our consideration of the position of the 
organs, I think it appears that, taking the system as we 
have it, the situation of every faculty is exactly that which 
is most proper and commodious, and that none of them 
could be changed or reversed without deranging what 
appears a very beautiful scheme. We have seen that 
they lie in regular order, advancing gradually from 
the lower to the higher, and thence to the highest of 
all. Each organ seems to lie adjacent to those of the 
other faculties with which it is most nearly allied ; and in 
some instances the different groups are so connected with 
one another, and radiate through each other in such a 
way, as to make the whole hang together like the different 
parts of one elegant design. This harmonious junction 
and dovetailing of the different organs is exceedingly 
curious ; and it is obvious that the coincidences are far 
too numerous and exact to have occurred by chance. 
As soon might we expect that a number of separate 
pieces of wood, brought casually together, should form 
a beautiful cabinet, as that the names of thirty-four or 
thirty-five faculties put down at random should compose 
a complete and well-combined system of the mental 
powers, as this appears to be. But it is well known that 
Gall and Spurzheim did not invent this system at once$ 
but formed it piecemeal, by a gradual and patient 
examination of facts. The organs of the different facul- 
ties were discovered one after another, and in some of 
their earlier works many blanks appear in the scheme 
of the faculties, which then wore a bald and disjointed 
appearance, till these were filled up by subsequent 
discoveries. 

It is indeed extremely unlikely that such a scheme 
should be devised by conjecture and hypothesis. It is 
so different from any that has been previously given to 
the world, that it is almost impossible it should have 



180 GENERAL REMARKS 

occurred to the mind of man, in any other way than 
that in which it did occur to its authors. The inference 
I would draw from the whole is, that this is not a human 
invention, but the evolution of a scheme composed and 
designed by the same mighty mind which devised the 
structure of the universe. 

Had Doctors Gall and Spurzheim sat down to devise a 
system from their own imagination, it is morally impos- 
sible they could have contrived one which harmonizes so 
completely with itself, and with the actual state of the 
human faculties, and the uses to which these are subser- 
vient. This is a problem which has puzzled the most 
eminent philosophers, so as almost to entitle us to con- 
clude that its solution was beyond the reach of human 
ingenuity. Independently, therefore, of more direct 
evidence, the presumption is exceedingly strong, that 
they did not invent, but discovered it by observation. 

Supposing that we knew nothing of human nature but 
what we are able to gather from systems of philosophy, 
what notion could we form of man from perusing all the 
works that have ever been written on the metaphysics of 
the schools? Is it not obvious that they afford a very 
indistinct or inadequate account of what man really is, 
and of what are his powers, dispositions, and functions. 
On the contrary, the system we have been now consi- 
dering, to use the expression of an acute writer, * seems 
to present us with " a portrait from the life." 

If we take our account of man from this system, would 
it not be evident, that a being possessed of the powers and 
faculties here attributed to him must be a wonderful 
being; that if the intellectual faculties are active and 
predominant, he must be a great and powerful being ; 
that if to these be added a large share of the destructive 
propensities, he must be a terrible being; and if the 
* The late Mr Abernethy of London. 



ON THE SYSTEM. 181 

kind, the social, the benevolent, the moral and religious 
qualities are added to the intellectual, and the destruc- 
tive powers used only for the purposes of good, he must 
be all but divine ; " in action how like an angel, in 
apprehension how like a God, — the beauty of the 
world, the paragon of animals !" But is it not equally 
evident, that if the balance of the powers is not duly 
preserved, if the lower propensities are too powerful, 
and act without due regulation, or even if any of the 
higher sentiments exceed the bounds of propriety and 
moderation, so as to interfere with the due exercise of 
the rest, his actions will be betrayed into obliquity and 
error, and the whole character will be degraded ? And 
such is the state of man. 



CHAPTER VI. 



ON MB. COMBES PRINCIPLE OF THE SUPREMACY OF THE MORAL SENTIMENTS 
AND INTELLECT, AND ON CONSCIENCE. 



Having stated shortly the scheme of the human 
faculties, which, generally speaking, both Mr Combe 
and I assume as the basis of our views, I shall now 
advert to some points upon which we differ, and where 
I think he errs in the practical application of his own 
system. 

The first grand principle which he adopts, is what he 
calls the supremacy of the moral sentiments and intellect 
over the lower propensities. 

Mr Combe opens his remarks on this subject, with 
another quotation from Butler, which I shall give entire. 

" Mankind has various instincts and principles of 



182 BISHOP BUTLEIt's VIEW 

action, as brute creatures have ; some leading most 
directly and immediately to the good of the community, 
and some most directly to private good. 

" Man has several which brutes have not ; particularly 
reflection, or conscience, an approbation of some principles 
or actions, and a disapprobation of others." 

It is remarkable how very exactly these views tally 
with the system revealed by Phrenology. 

" Brutes obey their instincts or principles of action, 
according to certain rules ; suppose, the constitution of 
their body, and the objects around them. 

" The generality of mankind also obey their instincts 
and principles, all of them, those propensions we call 
good, as well as the bad, according to the same rules, 
namely the constitution of their body, and the external 
circumstances which they are in. 

" Brutes, in acting according to the rules before 
mentioned, their bodily constitution and circumstances, 
act suitably to their whole nature. 

" Mankind also, in acting thus, would act suitably to 
their whole nature, if no more were to be said of man's 
nature than what has been said ; if that, as it is a true, 
were also a complete, adequate account of our nature. 

" But that is not a complete account of man's nature. 
Somewhat farther must be brought in to give us an 
adequate notion of it, namely, that one of these principles 
of action, conscience, or reflection, compared with the. 
rest, as they all stand together in the nature of man, 
plainly bears upon it marks of authority over all the 
rest, and claims the absolute direction of them all, to 
allow or forbid their gratification, being in itself a prin- 
ciple manifestly superior to a mere propension. And 
the conclusion is, that to allow no more to this superior 
principle or part of our nature than to other parts, to 
let it govern and guide only occasionally in common 



RESPECTING CONSCIENCE. 183 

with the rest, as its turn happens to come, from the 
temper and circumstances one happens to be in, this is 
not to act conformably to the constitution of man : 
neither can any human creature be said to act confor- 
mably to his constitution of nature, unless he allows to 
that superior 'principle the absolute authority ichich is 
due to it." 

To the doctrine here delivered I cordially and entirely 
subscribe. 

Mr Combe has discarded the term conscience — a term 
universally used, and perfectly understood by all man- 
kind, as applied to those internal feelings which dictate 
to us what is right and wrong in conduct — and has 
adopted in its place a formula involving a theory of his 
own. "Right conduct," he says, "is that which is 
approved of by the whole moral and intellectual faculties, 
fully enlightened, and acting in harmonious combina- 
tion. This," he adds, " is what I call the supremacy of 
the moral sentiments and intellect" 

Now in order to understand this, it is necessary to 
know what is here meant by the term " moral and 
intellectual faculties." Taking the expression in its 
popular acceptation, it is universally admitted, that the 
moral and intellectual faculties are those by w T hich the 
conduct is to be regulated ; and, therefore, to tell us that 
right conduct is that which is approved of by these 
faculties, gives us no information whatever. We knew 
all that before phrenology was discovered. But these 
expressions are used by Mr Combe in a limited and 
technical sense — not applied to the whole moral capacities 
of our nature, but to certain distinct feelings or propen- 
sions, of which the precise functions have been specified 
by phrenological writers, and which they have chosen to 
denominate, specially and exclusively, the moral senti- 
ments. But although thus limited to a special class of 



184 MR combe's view. 

the feelings, his language with respect to them is far 
from precise. He sometimes speaks of the moral senti- 
ments and intellect generally; at other times he states 
them to be the faculties peculiar to man. Here we begin 
to see the defects of the arrangement and classification 
of the faculties which he has adopted, as mentioned in 
the last chapter. The sentiments peculiar to man are 
there stated by him to be veneration, firmness, conscien- 
tiousness, hope, wonder, ideality, icit, and imitation, 
Benevolence is there excluded, as that is stated to be a 
sentiment common to man and the inferior animals. 

When, however, he comes more closely to the subject, 
he finds that this enumeration will not answer his pur- 
pose. If there be a principle of benevolence in man, 
which doubtless there is, it is impossible to exclude it 
from the list of the moral powers. Mr Combe gets over 
the difficulty in this way : " Benevolence," he says in a 
note, " is stated in the works on phrenology as common 
to man with the lower animals ; but in these creatures it 
appeal's to produce rather passive meekness and good 
nature than actual desire for each other's happiness. In 
the human race, this last is its proper function ; and, 
viewed in this light, I treat of it as exclusively a human 
faculty." To this I answer, that if the feelings of bene- 
volence in man and in the lower animals are feelings the 
same in kind, and having the same tendency, (which I 
presume they must be from their being called by the 
same name by all phrenologists,) they must be essentially 
the same feelings, and the only difference between them 
must be either a difference in degree, which we can per- 
fectly understand, or the difference occasioned by the 
superior intellect of man, giving the sentiment a larger 
scope, or field of action. There can, I think, be no 
other differences ; and if so, Mr Combe is not entitled 
to state this as peculiarly a human sentiment, unless he 



SUPREMACY OF MORAL SENTIMENTS. 185 

is also disposed to treat in the same way cautiousness, 
love of approbation, and other feelings, which, when 
illuminated by man's intellect, receive a totally different 
direction, and are extended to a totally different class of 
objects, than those which occupy the feelings which 
receive these names in the animal tribes. 

But the list is not only defective — it is redundant, and 
includes faculties which Mr Combe does not admit to 
have a moral tendency. In his enumeration of the 
" moral sentiments" at p. 18, he begins with benevolence, 
and then adds veneration, hope, ideality, wonder, and 
conscientiousness, (omitting wit, imitation, and firmness ;) 
and he adds in a note, " The classification of the moral 
sentiments in the phrenological system is not perfect. It 
includes wit, imitation, firmness, and wonder, which are 
not necessarily or essentially moral. By the moral 
sentiments, when used as a general expression, I mean 
benevolence, veneration, and conscientiousness, aided by 
hope and ideality." 

Mr Combe talks about philosophy, and about philo- 
sophical principles ; but surely, if we are to treat the 
subject philosophically, we are entitled to ask upon 
what philosophical principle he proceeds, when he fixes 
upon those five faculties as exclusively the moral senti- 
ments ; and also upon w T hat principle he regards three 
of them as the chief, and the other two as auxiliary. It 
appears to me that he proceeds on no principle at all, 
and that both the selection and the distinction are purely 
arbitrary. 

It might have brought us nearer to a better arrange- 
ment, if it had been recollected that imitation is a faculty 
possessed by several of the lower animals ; and still 
farther, if it be held, as I strongly suspect to be the 
case, that " wit" is not a sentiment, but an intellectual 
faculty, as it was considered by Gall. But why omit 
22 



186 EXAMINATION OF 

firmness, which, if it do not of itself originate any moral 
feeling, is indispensably necessary to the proper working 
of the faculties which do originate such feelings, and 
without which there can be no such thing as consistent 
moral conduct ? 

As to the intellectual powers, he has given no state- 
ment of those which partake in the supremacy he 
contends for. But I am not disposed to be critical as 
to this, it being impossible that any of the intellectual 
faculties can possess any supremacy over another. All 
are supreme in their own way when rightly used, and 
none can claim any pre-eminence in matters which do 
not lie within their own province. If there be any 
difference among them in this respect, it is this, that the 
observing and knowing faculties, which are generally 
called the lower intellectual faculties, and most of which 
are common to man and the brutes, are less apt to be in 
error than the reasoning and reflecting powers, which 
belong exclusively to man. Whatever conclusions we 
may come to through the means of comparison and 
causality, by any reasonings from analogy, or from the 
supposed connection of cause and effect, if we find these 
contradicted by facts which are palpable to the senses, 
the reasoning must go for nothing. I am willing, how- 
ever, to take Mr Combe's statement here as it is, and 
give him the benefit of all the intellectual faculties. 

But waving all objections to vague and inconsistent 
language, and taking Mr Combe's statement in any 
way, it must appear to be rather rash to attribute 
supremacy to any set of faculties, let them be what they 
may, when we find it expressly admitted, that all the 
human faculties are liable to be abused, to be defective, 
to be wrong directed, and that one class of them is not 
exempt from error more than another. It seems absurd 
to attribute supremacy to that which is thus fallible ; 



MR COMBE'S VIEW OF SUPREMACY. 187 

and Mr Combe is so sensible of this, that he finds it 
necessary, in order to maintain the supremacy he 
contends for, to introduce three new principles. 

" In maintaining this supremacy," he observes, " I 
do not consider any of the moral sentiments and intel- 
lectual faculties singly, or even all of them collectively, 
as sufficient to direct conduct by their mere instinctive 
suggestions. To fit them to discharge this important 
duty, they must act in harmonious combination, and be 
illuminated by knowledge of science, and of moral and 
religious dutg." 

It must be quite obvious, that, by these qualifications, 
Mr Combe's great principle is reduced to nothing. We 
could understand the doctrine if it were stated, and if 
we were satisfied that we could trust to the spontaneous 
suggestions of these sentiments, one or all of them, either 
by themselves, or when enlightened by the intellect, but 
this, we have seen, Mr Combe does not maintain. He 
finds that his elephant, the peculiarly human sentiments, 
(even when assisted by all the intellectual powers,) 
before it can be fitted to support the whole moral world, 
must itself have something to stand upon ; and there- 
fore he introduces no fewer than three tortoises to 
support it : 

1. Harmonious combination. 

2. Knowledge of science. 

3. Knowledge of moral and religious duty. 

We give him up the first at once, as it is quite evident 
that, in any view, powers that are not in harmony among 
themselves, can never be fitted to govern others, or to 
afford a rule of conduct to the whole. 

The second of his postulates, the knowledge of science, 
means, we presume, a knowledge of the natural laws ; 
that is, an intimate knowledge of our own nature, and 
of every thing else in the world. We have already stated 



188 , THE MORAL FACULTIES 

what occurs as to this. It is certainly desirable for us to 
possess this knowledge, just as it may be desirable that 
we should be able to fly, to live a thousand years, or any 
thing else that is at present unattainable. But if we are 
to remain ignorant of morality until we attain this 
knowledge, we are afraid a considerable time must still 
elapse before the world is destined to emerge from its 
present state of moral darkness. 

The third and last condition is, that the moral and 
intellectual faculties shall be illuminated by a knowledge 
of moral and religious duty. Is it not obvious that this 
is giving up all that he had previously stated ? A know- 
ledge of moral and religious duty is exactly what we are 
in search of; and if we are able to attain it, where is the 
use of all the cumbrous machinery of moral sentiments, 
or sentiments peculiar to man, or any sentiments you 
please, illuminated by intellect, and a knowledge of all 
the natural laws, and acting in harmonious combination? 
This is really darkening counsel by vain words. 

But to proceed with Mr Combe's view of the matter. 
Where is this knowledge of moral and religious duty to 
be obtained ? Not certainly from the moral sentiments 
and intellect, for these, he has already said, are insuffi- 
cient to direct our conduct without this very knowledge. 
Where, then, are we to go, for man has no higher 
faculties than these ? 

Mr Combe informs us, that the sources of this know- 
ledge are " observation and reflection, experience, and 
instruction by books, teachers, and all other means by 
which the Creator has provided for the improvement of the 
human mind." This is all very good, and not particu- 
larly new ; but how are we to observe and reflect except 
by means of the intellectual faculties ? How are we to 
draw r profit from experience, except by the same means ? 
As to instruction by books, he should explain what books 



INSUFFICIENT OF THEMSELVES. 189 

he means ? Is it books written by men ? Are not these 
the productions of the human sentiments and intellect ? 
Who are the teachers he refers to, and whence do they 
derive the doctrines they teach? What faculties do 
they possess which we have not, and what higher claims 
have they than ourselves to pronounce definitively as to 
what is right in conduct? 

Mr Combe refers to other means which the Creator 
has provided for the improvement of the human mind. 
To what means does he allude? All merely human 
means are included among the particulars already 
noticed. We feel ourselves, therefore, upon the prin- 
ciples stated by Mr Combe himself, shut up to the 
conclusion, that these means must be something more 
than human. We come just to the point to which the 
matter has been so often brought before, — we are 
compelled to resort to Revelation. 

Unless Mr Combe is prepared to deny the authority 
of Revelation altogether, he must admit that it is one of 
those means by which the Creator has provided for the 
improvement of the human mind. And if he admits 
this, and, after all the circuitous route he has taken, his 
doctrine leads, in its ultimate result, to the conclusion, 
that the intellect and sentiments of man are insufficient 
of themselves to direct what is right in conduct, and 
that to fit them for this important purpose, they require 
to be illuminated by reflection and experience, and by 
that knowledge of moral and religious duty, which is to 
be obtained from the revealed will of God, we are hence- 
forth agreed, and no objection, so far as I know, can ^be 
stated to his principle. According to this view, the 
moral sentiments and intellect are extremely useful in 
enabling us to obtain a view of our moral and religious 
duty, and in retaining us in the path of duty when so 
discovered ; but what becomes of their supremacy ? 



190 DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE ANIMAL 

Mr Combe has gradually modified this doctrine of 
the supremacy. In a paper on this subject, published 
in the Phrenological Journal,* he stated it in a more 
uncompromising way. What he then insisted upon 
was, " the natural supremacy of the moral sentiments." 
There was nothing stated there about the necessity of 
their being enlightened by a knowledge of moral and 
religious duty. We have seen how he has modified the 
doctrine since. The same kind of modification appears 
in the arguments he has used to prove this supremacy. 
" The great distinction" he observes in the Journal, 
" between the animal faculties and the powers proper to 
man is, that the former are all selfish in their desires, 
while the latter disinterestedly long for the happiness of 
others." This statement was opposed upon grounds 
which he found himself unable to resist, and accordingly 
he has now modified it as follows : — " The great distinc- 
tion between the animal facidties and the powers proper 
to man is, that the former do not prompt us to seek the 
welfare of mankind at large : their object is chiefly the 
preservation of the individual himself, his family, or his 
tribe ; while the latter have the general happiness of the 
human race, and our duties to God, as their ends." 

This last statement is still not quite correct. It would 
require, at any rate, to be limited strictly to those powers, 
which Mr Combe has latterly described as the proper 
moral sentiments ; but even to some of these the distinc- 
tion attempted to be drawn does not apply. It does not 
appear how wonder, hope, and ideality prompt us to seek 
the welfare of mankind at large. Even veneration does 
not by itself refer directly to the welfare of the human 
race. The only two faculties which seem directly to 
have this for their object, are benevolence and the sense 
of justice ; but Mr Combe very properly does not con- 
* Vol. iii. p. 327. 



AND MORAL POWERS. 191 

sider these as the only moral faculties. But even taking 
the matter as he states it, I have yet to learn that a 
feeling is not a moral one because it is limited in its 
object to private good. Are the ties which connect us 
with our wives, our families, our friends, or our country, 
less strong and obligatory, or our duties towards them 
less sacred and binding, than those which have relation 
to strangers — to all mankind ? Are they not acknow- 
ledged to be more so ? Are they not at least moral 
duties ? and can we shake ourselves free from them upon 
any pretence of preferring the welfare of the whole race 
to that of a few individuals ? Is not the neglect of these 
duties one of the most grievous crimes we can possibly 
commit ? and is it not declared that he who provides not 
for those of his own house, is worse than an infidel ? 

Another principle which he formerly maintained was 
this — that the " animal faculties [meaning the faculties 
common to man and the lower animals] in themselves 
are insatiable, and, from the constitution of the world, 
never can be satisfied ; holding satisfaction to be the 
appeasing of their highest and last impulse of unregu- 
lated desire ;" while, on the other hand, " the higher 
sentiments have a boundless scope for gratification ; their 
least indulgence is delightful, and their highest activity 
is bliss. They cause no repentance, leave no void, but 
render life a scene at once of peaceful tranquillity and 
sustained felicity.*' To this it was objected, that it was 
not a fair comparison of the two sets of faculties, but a 
comparison of the abuses of die one, with the fair, proper, 
and legitimate exercise of the other ; that all the faculties, 
from the lowest to the highest, were liable to be abused, 
and that the improper or excessive activity, even of the 
highest sentiments, led to evil, and consequently, to 
repentance ; that taking the propensities as they are, 
apart from their abuses, they are not insatiable : that, on 



192 NO NEW PRINCIPLES 

the contrary, they are more easily satisfied than the 
higher sentiments ; that they are soon gratified to their 
utmost capacity of enjoyment, and when so gratified, 
their cravings cease ; while the sentiments peculiar to 
man seem to have no limits to their aspirations, but bear 
upon them the marks of being created for infinity. 

Mr Combe seems to have been satisfied that his first 
statement was incorrect, and accordingly he has now 
modified it as follows : — " All the faculties ichen in excess 
are insatiable, and from the constitution of the world, 
never can be satisfied. They, indeed, may be soon 
satisfied on any particular occasion : Food will soon fill 
the stomach, &c. ; but after repose they will all renew 
their solicitations. They must all, therefore, be regula- 
ted, particularly the propensities and lower sentiments." 
It seems to me that this statement is just as inaccurate 
as the former : but, supposing it admitted, what becomes 
of the great distinction formerly attempted to be drawn 
between the lower powers and those peculiar to man ? 

There is no such distinction as to the possibility of 
satisfying the faculties. They may all, high and low, 
be gratified on a particular occasion, but no gratification 
they can receive at any one time will satisfy them for 
ever. They all renew their solicitations. It would 
rather appear that the longings of the higher sentiments 
are the more difficult to satisfy of the two. Nothing in 
the present life can ever fully gratify their aspirations, 
and they can look for entire satisfaction only to another 
state of existence. This, and the higher value of their 
objects, are the true causes of their superior dignity. 

With all this shifting of his ground, Mr Combe has 
completely failed in his attempt to establish a philoso- 
phical principle, which may serve as the foundation of a 
new system of morals. There are no discoveries to be 
made in morals, — every thing relating to the subject that 



TO BE LOOKED FOR IN MORALS. 193 

is either speculatively true or practically useful has been 
known for ages. All that is really of consequence to 
be known, is included in the short statement of Butler, 
that " man has various instincts and principles as brute 
creatures have, some leading directly to the good of the 
community, and some most directly to private good ; 
and that he has several which brutes have not, parti- 
cularly reflection or conscience, an approbation of some 
principles and actions, and disapprobation of others." 
Phrenology enables us to enumerate the instincts and 
principles here referred to a little more accurately than 
we could heretofore, to give them distinct names, and to 
state their uses and relative dignity. But with all this, 
it has not really furnished us with a single new propen- 
sity, sentiment, or principle of action, which was not 
before known to exist, by those practically acquainted 
with human nature. In saying this, I am saying 
nothing derogatory to the study of Phrenology : on the 
contrary, I consider it as its best recommendation, and 
its highest praise, that its dictates coincide perfectly with 
those of practical good sense ; and the benefit which I 
expect to arise from it is this, that when it is more care- 
fully studied and better understood, it may make the 
rules of good sense more generally received and more 
uniformly acted on. To effect any good in this way, 
however, much caution will be required ; and care must 
be taken that we are not led away by plausible theory 
from the well known paths of practical morality. 

It might have been better, if, instead of going about 
to establish new principles of morals, we contented our- 
selves with shewing wherein Phrenology coincides with 
principles already known. It is no small matter to have 
it proved, that among the sentiments peculiar to man of 
which it gives us an account, there are three which all 
will acknowledge to be of pre-eminent use and dignity, — 

R 



194 RELATIVE DIGNITY AND 

conscientiousness, or the sense of justice, benevolence, and 
veneration ; and we are gratified to observe the coinci- 
dence of their dictates with the excellent summary of 
human duty given us by the inspired writer: — " He 
hath shewed thee, O man, what is good ; and what doth 
the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love 
mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God." 

Supremacy cannot be arrogated to any thing human. 
There is nothing truly supreme, but the will of the 
Creator. The faculties which he has implanted in us 
to direct us to what is good, are only valuable as means 
of giving us a knowledge of that will. But we are to 
blame, if, knowing the imperfection of these faculties, 
even in the best of men, we rest satisfied with their 
dictates alone, and do not resort to every means within 
our reach for obtaining a knowledge of his will. But as 
he has thought proper to lay before us a distinct revela- 
tion of that will, can we be excused, if, on any pretence 
whatever, we refuse to examine that revelation, and do 
not endeavour, by every means in our power, to ascertain 
its precise import ? 

With regard to the human faculties, and their relative 
degrees of use and dignity, the real state of the case 
seems to be as follows : man possesses all the faculties 
which are separately possessed by any of the lower 
animals, and others peculiar to himself. He possesses 
those faculties which are common to all the animal 
tribes, even the lowest, without which they could not 
exist, could not be animals at all, — such as the feelings 
of hunger and thirst, and the desire to propagate his 
species. These, if inferior in dignity to the faculties 
peculiar to man, are superior in necessity. The race 
may exist without the one, it cannot without the other. 

We need not again enumerate the faculties. Their 
very names shew that they are of different degrees of 
dignity and value ; that they rise from lower to higher 



HARMONY OF THE FACULTIES. 195 

and higher grades, but that each of them is in its own 
place good, and tends to a useful end. Those which 
have in view the preservation of the individual, his off- 
spring, and other near connections, are more necessary to 
the race than those which look to the general good of 
the whole. The latter, unless confined to objects which 
are near us, and the attainment of which is clearly within 
our means, are exceedingly apt to evaporate in words, 
and in a vague and indolent sentimentalism, which, in- 
stead of doing good, does harm, by leading us away from 
the humble paths of unpretending usefulness. Universal 
philanthropy, or that which assumes the name, unless 
under the conduct of consummate prudence and con- 
summate ability, seldom or never produces any result at 
all adequate to the magnificence of its pretensions, and 
never even then, without a concurrence of circumstances 
as rare as it is fortunate. In short, the desire of doing 
good, unless limited to proper objects, like other kinds 
of ambition, is apt to end in disappointment, or, as the 
poet says of glory, — 

is like the circle in the water, 

That never ceases to enlarge itself, 

Till, by broad spreading, it disperse to nought. 

We are not entitled to pick and choose among the 
faculties, to deify and idolize one class of them, and to 
degrade and vilify another. The more we examine the 
arrangements of Providence, and the motives and con- 
sequences of our actions, the more reason we find to 
believe, that the interests of the individual and of the 
race are identically the same, and are to be advanced by 
the same course of conduct. Honesty has long been 
admitted to be, even in a selfish view, the best policy, 
and a just and liberal treatment of our fellow-men, in 
the end, the best means of promoting our own interest. 
The conferring of benefits on others conduces, more than 



196 OFFICE OF THE INTELLECT. 

any thing else, to increase our own happiness. According 
to this view, a thoroughly enlightened self-esteem, leading 
to the desire of our own greatest good, and a thoroughly 
enlightened benevolence, leading to a desire for the 
highest welfare of our fellow-men, should direct us pre- 
cisely to the same course of conduct, — that course which 
we have reason to believe, and which indeed we know, 
to be most conformable to the will of God. If the fore- 
going view be correct, the whole powers of the mind, the 
selfish, the social and benevolent, and the religious, if 
all were sufficiently enlightened and properly directed, 
would be entirely in harmony with each other, and pro- 
duce one harmonious result. This, could it be attained, 
would be the perfection of human nature : this, and 
nothing short of this, would be perfect morality. 

The view here taken of the human faculties, which 
represents them rising one above another by an almost 
imperceptible gradation, and all in harmony with each 
other, affords a more pleasing, and, at the same time, I 
am satisfied, a truer picture of our nature in its most 
perfect state, than that which would divide them into 
two classes, separated by a wide and strongly marked 
interval. Thus, and thus only, does the constitution of 
man appear in a light worthy of its original perfection, 
and worthy of its high ultimate destiny — not like a piece 
of new cloth put into an old garment, where the parts 
are not fitly joined, but like the " robe which was with- 
out a seam, woven from the top throughout." It is all 
of a piece, every part corresponding to another, with 
nothing superfluous, and nothing awanting. Man is not 
like a satyr, the face and upper extremities only human, 
but the lower parts those of a brute. He is all human, 
bearing in every part the impress of the same divine 
original. 

Do we then say that all the faculties are equal ? We 



INFORMING MORAL JUDGMENT. 197 

say the very reverse, — that they rise in dignity and 
authority, from lower to higher, from higher to the 
highest. How do we know this ? We know it by the 
same means as Mr Combe knows it. We require no 
philosophical teacher, no cunningly devised system, to 
inform us of it. We feel it — we are conscious of it. 
The faculties, if possessed in a sound and efficient state, 
give us intimations of no doubtful kind of the different 
degrees of authority to which they are entitled. 

The intellect has a twofold office to perform in the 
formation of our moral judgments: 1st, in enlightening 
the feelings, and presenting the objects by which they 
are interested in the proper point of view ; and, 2d, 
in acting with consciousness, turning their operation 
inwards upon the state of those feelings themselves, 
weighing and comparing their several intimations, and 
pronouncing upon the whole a decision, " approving of 
some principles and actions, and disapproving of others." 
This is what Bishop Butler calls reflection or conscience. 

We are not entitled to confine conscience to the 
dictates of one particular class of feelings. All the 
feelings of which we are conscious, having a moral 
tendency, or bearing in any way whatever on the due 
regulation of our conduct, must be considered as sharing 
in its decisions. Mr Combe says, the higher sentiments 
themselves are blind guides, and in order to direct our 
conduct, require to be enlightened by intellect. But 
the intellect is also capable of enlightening the lower 
feelings which are common to us and the inferior 
animals ; and when they are so enlightened, and are 
employed in their own legitimate province, their ten- 
dency is as decidedly moral as that of the higher 
sentiments. Self-esteem leads us to seek that which is 
for our own advantage. When unenlightened by 
intellect, it may prompt us to indulge in present 

r 2 



198 MORAL EFFECT 

pleasures of which we do not see the evil consequences. 
But if intellect once clearly points out that our greatest 
and permanent good is only to be attained by a life of 
temperance and sobriety, truth and honesty, a regard 
for the welfare of others, and a humble reliance on the 
goodness of God, — self-esteem will, when so enlightened, 
become a powerful aid to virtue, and furnish the strongest 
motive to strict moral conduct. 

Philoprogenitkeness is one of the lower propensities- 
and is possessed by many animals. Its objects are 
limited. It does not certainly aim at the happiness of 
all mankind, though, in its effects, it has immense 
influence on the welfare of the whole race. It only 
leads men to the love of their own offspring, and of 
young and tender beings in general. It attaches us 
to them by the strongest ties, and impels us to attend to 
their wants, and minister, as far as in our power, to 
their happiness. When unenlightened, it may lead to 
absurd indulgence and improper treatment of children, 
just as unenlightened benevolence may lead men to acts 
which are hurtful instead of being beneficial to society, 
or, as Mr Combe himself states, " to injurious indul- 
gence of the appetites and fancies of others." But allow 
here the same advantage as is insisted on in the case of 
the higher sentiments. Let the feeling be properly 
enlightened by the intellect with a view of what con- 
duces to the permanent good of its object, and it will 
undoubtedly lead us to seek that permanent good, and 
to refuse hurtful indulgences, and thus its tendency will 
be as strictly moral as that of the weaker, but more 
diffusive, desire to benefit the whole race. 

Benevolence is a feeling said to be common to man 
and the inferior animals. Being in them unenlightened 
by intellect, it is confined to a passive meekness of dis- 
position. In man it is more active : but it is the light 



OF VARIOUS POWERS. 199 

afforded by intellect which renders it so different a 

feeling in him. and gives it so much a larger scope and 
field of action. Other sentiments, common to man and 
the animals, which in them are confined and selfish in 
their objects, are in man extended in a similar manner. 
For instance, cautiousness. This is a most important. 
and, when enlightened by intellect, is undoubtedly a 
moral power, restraining us from action until we are 
assured that we can act with safety. Observe how it 
leads the physician to probe every system oi disease, to 
examine every slight indication, to put every question 
which may elicit the truth, to doubt, to weigh proba- 
bilities, to leave nothing unexamined which may enable 
him to effect a cure, or to avoid the risks that may 
attend a rash and precipitate decision. In like manner. 
when the judge is engaged in trying a difficult or doubt- 
ful point, on his caution, as much as on his sense of 
justice, depends the probable soundness of his judgment. 
and the safety of the rights submitted to his determi- 
nation. So it is with the genera], on whose care and 
caution depend the safety, the welfare, the lives of his 
— it may be the rights, the independence, 
the liberties of his country. To all who are in any way 
placed in situations 01 trust, cautiousness is not useful 
merely, it is indispensable. 

There are not merely some, but many — nay, a very 
large proportion of mankind — who, in certain circum- 
stances, are not to be restrained from crime by any 
other means than thenar of punishment. This is the 
case in general with the ignorant and uneducated part 
of mankind, and, indeed, almost with the whole oi our 
race before the intellect has sufficiently expanded, or 
has been sufficiently enlightened by education. When 
the fear of punishment operates so as to prevent offences, 
who shall denv it to be moral feeling ? It mav be, and 



200 CONSCIEN'CE AS EXPLAINED 

certainly is, a low motive compared with some others, 
but it is not the less a moral motive, as indeed is every 
one that operates upon the will so as to regulate the 
conduct. 

But it is in regard to a future state that cautiousness 
vindicates most distinctly its right to be considered as 
a moral element in our constitution. When intellect 
points out the probability, and revelation assures us of 
the fact, that there is a state of existence beyond the 
grave, where blessings are in store for those who conform 
to the divine will ; but that the wicked, those who set 
that will at defiance, and who persevere to the end in 
a state of impenitence, will suffer a punishment corres- 
ponding to their evil deserts, — will not this, if firmly 
believed, be a powerful preservative from wickedness ? 
It is needless to say that this is a low and selfish motive. 
Granting it to be so, it is not the less a moral instrument 
to compel us into the path of duty. But it is not more 
selfish than hope, or any other feeling, benevolence only 
excepted. It is not merely for ourselves that we are 
alarmed, but for our friends, our countrymen, for all 
mankind. We are incited by it to greater and greater 
exertions, to spread a knowledge of true religion and 
a pure morality among the heathen, and among the 
ignorant and vicious at home. It just doubles the motive, 
both for ourselves and for others, when we find that one 
course of conduct leads to happiness, and another to 
misery, in an everlasting state, and that there is no 
halting between the two; that we, and every other 
human being, must either be in the one predicament or 
in the other. Is it possible to conceive an accumulation 
of motives stronger than this ? and can we allow to the 
one any superior cogency, any supremacy, that is denied 
to the other. 

The true principle, then, which dictates, or ought to 



BY DR CHALMERS. 201 

dictate, what is right in conduct, is not the predominance 
of any one set of faculties over another, but the just 
balance amon^ them all, each of them beincr allowed 
exactly that influence which is its due. Each of them is 
supreme within its own department, when acting in 
harmony with the rest, and " when enlightened by 
intellect and a knowledge of moral and religious duty." 
When all of them are properly illuminated and directed, 
there can be no opposition between them. To obtain 
this just balance and harmony among the faculties, so as 
to give to each its due share of satisfaction, and its due 
share of influence, is the extremely difficult problem 
which moralists are required to solve. 

To enable each individual to attain to this just 
balance and harmony in his faculties, the only internal 
guide, though sometimes an insufficient one, is conscience. 
This is no particular faculty or feeling, such as bene- 
volence, veneration, the sense of justice, or the like. It 

is the GENERAL POWER OF MORAL JUDGMENT which 

the mind possesses in consequence of its whole constitu- 
tion, resulting from its general consciousness of separate 
and individual feelings, and the power of the intellect 
in reflecting upon these, and determining their relative 
decrees of weight and authority. This, I think, corres- 
ponds with the view taken by Bishop Butler, in the 
passage formerly quoted. A similar view of the matter 
is adopted by Dr Chalmers, in his work on Natural 
Theology. " The supremacy of conscience," he ob- 
serves, " does not seem to have been sufficiently adverted 
to by Dr Thomas Brown. He treats the moral feeling 
rather as an individual emotion, which takes its part 
in the enumeration along with others in his list, than 
as the great master emotion that is not appeased but 
by its ascendency over them all. Now, instead of a. 
single combatant in the play of many others, and which 



202 CONSCIENCE PREMONITIVE, 

will only obtain the victory if physically of greater power 
and force, it should be viewed as separate and signalized 
from the rest by its own felt and inherent claim of supe- 
riority over them. Each emotion hath its own charac- 
teristic object wherewith it is satisfied. But the specific 
object of this emotion, is the regulation of all the active 
powers of the soul ; and without this, it is not satisfied."* 
After illustrating this by the discovery which may be 
made of the original purpose and object of a watch, by 
inspecting the different parts of its mechanism, he adds 
the following : — " And a similar discovery may be made 
by examination of the various parts and principles which 
make up the moral system of man — for we see various 
parts and principles there. We see ambition, (self- 
esteem,) having power for its object, and without the 
attainment of which it is not satisfied ; and avarice, (ac- 
quisitiveness.) having wealth for its object, without the 
attainment of which it is not satisfied ; and benevolence, 
having for its object the good of others, without the 
attainment of which it is not satisfied ; and the love of 
reputation, (love of approbation) having for its object 
their applause, without which it is not satisfied ; and 
lastly, to proceed no farther in the enumeration, con- 
science, which surveys and superintends the ichole man, 
whose distinct and appropriate object it is to have the 
entire control, both of his inward desires and outward 
doings, and without the attainment of this, it is thwarted 
from its proper aim, and remains unsatisfied. Each 
appetite, or affection of our nature, has its own distinct 
object : but this last is the object of conscience, which 
may be termed the moral affection. [It should rather 
be termed the power of moral judgment. ,] The place 
which it occupies, or rather which it is felt that it should 
occupy, and which naturally belongs to it, is that of a 
* Chalmers's Works, vol. i. p. 312. 



APPROVING, OR CONDEMNING. 203 

governor, and taking to itself the direction over all the 
other powers and passions of humanity. If this supe- 
riority be denied to it, there is a felt violence done to 
the whole economy of man." 

Considering that Dr Chalmers is not a phrenologist, 
it is astonishing how near he comes, in the above passages, 
to that very language which a phrenologist would have 
used in reference to the subject under consideration. 
His view of the matter, and that of Butler, correspond 
precisely with that which I have endeavoured to give ; 
and the whole may be taken as an instance of what I 
formerly stated, that the principles of phrenology, when 
right unfolded, will ultimately be found to coincide 
perfectly with those to which men of superior intellect 
have already been led by intuitive feeling and practical 
good sense. The difference between the view taken by 
Dr Chalmers and Bishop Butler, with regard to the 
general supremacy of conscience, and Mr Combe's view 
which attributes supremacy to certain special feelings, 
is sufficiently apparent, and need not be here farther 
insisted on. 

I wish now to examine a little more particularly, the 
practical working of that power of reflection or conscience, 
such as it is possessed by the generality of mankind. It 
is admitted not to be in all cases, by itself, a perfect rule, 
or an efficient guide to right conduct ; but as it is the 
only internal guide we have, it is desirable to know in 
what manner it gives its intimations, how far these are 
to be trusted, and how far they are generally operative. 

It is proper to take into view the different states of 
this power, as it manifests itself before and after the act 
which is to be judged of. In the former case, it may be 
called premonitive conscience ; in the latter, approving or 
condemning conscience. 

And here, in place of going into a long analysis, which 



204 ILLUSTRATION OF THE WORKING 

might be tiresome to some readers, and little instructive 
to others, I shall present a distinct case by way of illus- 
tration ; and instead of proposing one of my own, I shall 
take one from the writings of an author who is generally 
allowed to have known something of human nature, and 
whose pictures of the internal workings of the mind have 
generally been regarded as correct. 

In the tragedy of Macbeth, the poet introduces the 
usurper reasoning with himself previous to the murder 
of Duncan, and stating the motives which premonitive 
conscience suggests to dissuade him from the meditated 
crime. 

If it were done, when 'tis done, then 'twere well 
It were done quickly : If the assassination 
Could trammel up the consequence, and catch 
With his success, surcease : That but this blow 
Might be the be all, and the end all here — 
! But here, upon this bank and shoal of time, — 
We 'd jump the life to come. 

It appears by this that Macbeth is not influenced by 
the fears of a future judgment ; at least, that he is deter- 
mined not to let this stand in the way of his purpose. 
He proceeds — 

But in these cases, 
We still have judgment here ; that do but teach 
Bloody instructions, which, being taught, return 
To plague th' inventor. This even-handed justice 
Commends th' ingredients of our poison'd chalice 
To our own lips. 

He w r as aware that great crimes seldom escape 
punishment even in this world ; and that others might 
hereafter be incited by his example to treat himself as he 
now intended to treat his present victim. These are 
mere selfish and prudential considerations, but he now 
approaches what has the appearance of conscientious 
feeling. 



OF CONSCIENCE. 205 

He's here in double trust : 
First, as I am his kinsman and his friend, 
Strong both against the deed ; then as bis host, 
Who should against his murderer shut the door, 
Not bear the knife myself. 

He warms as he goes on, and represents the amiable 
qualities of his victim in terms that appear sincere ; but 
still what he seems most to regard is not the pleading of 
natural compassion and moral principle in himself, but 
the universal condemnation of the world which will 
pursue the perpetrator of so great a crime. 

Besides tbis, Duncan 
Hath borne his faculties so meek, hath been 
So clear in his great office, that his virtues 
Will plead like angels, trumpet-tongued, against 
The deep damnation of bis taking off. 
And pity, like a naked new born babe, 
Striding the blast, or heaven's cherubim, horsed 
Upon the sightless coursers of tbe air, 
Will blow tbe horrid deed in every eye, 
That tears shall drown the wind. 

He has by this time brought his whole feelings into a 
proper tone — he gives but a glance at the worthless cause 
for which he would plunge into so irremediable guilt. 

I have no spur 
To prick the sides of my intent, but only 
Vaulting ambition, &c. 

The result of the whole is, that his bloody purpose is 
for the present abandoned. 

The above exhibits, as I conceive, a correct picture of 
premonitive conscience, suggesting, in its own quiet way, 
all the motives which, in such a mind as Macbeth's, 
might occur to dissuade him from so horrid a deed as 
murder ; and we find that, except in one or two allusions, 
the real guilt of the deed is hardly so much as thought 
of. It is not the crime, but the consequences of the 



206 ILLUSTRATION OF THE WORKING 

crime to himself, that he chiefly fears — the probability 
of its being somehow punished even in this world — the 
universal horror it will excite in the minds of others, — 
these are what determine him, for the time, to give up 
his murderous intent. Not that he does not feel the 
guilt too, in all its aggravation, but that this would not 
have been sufficient to decide him without the other 
considerations that have been mentioned. 

After the crime is perpetrated, we have a scene of a 
different kind. The high wrought state of excitement 
into which his ambitious views, and the persuasions of 
the lady, bad raised him when he " screwed his courage 
to the sticking place," and determined to commit the 
act, has now given way, and reflection, or conscience, now 
opens his eyes to the full horror of his situation. 
Macb. I have done the deed.— Didst thou not hear a noise ? 

It was but the owl and the cricket, but to the disturbed 
mind of Macbeth every thing is a cause of alarm. His 
eye glances on the blopdy evidences of his guilt, and he 
exclaims, — 

This is a sorry sight. 

Lady M. A foolish thought to say a sorry sight. 

Macb. There 's one did laugh in's sleep, and one cried murder I 
They did wake each other. I stood and heard them ; 
But they did say their prayers, and address'd them 
Again to sleep. 

Ladg M. There are two lodged together. 

Macb. One cried, God bless us ! and, Amen, the other ; 
As they had seen me with these hangman's hands. 
Listening their fear,, I could not say, Amen, g 
When they did say, God bless us. 

Lady M. Consider it not so deeply. 

Macb. But wherefore could not I pronounce, amen ? 
I had most need of blessing, and amen 
Stuck in my throat. 

Lady M. These deeds must not be thought 

After these ways, else they will make us mad. 

There is nothing more hitherto than the natural 



OF CONSCIENCE. 207 

operation of the good feelings he possessed, awakened to 
activity, after the strong excitement under which he com- 
mitted the crime had subsided. What follows is bolder. 
He had previously seen an air-drawn dagger — the mere 
product of his excited fancy. He is now represented as 
hearing a voice, which is equally the result of high 
wrought feelings, and expressive of the deep horror with 
which his crime seems now invested. 

Methought I heard a voice cry, Sleep no more ! 
Macbeth does murder sleep, the innocent sleep ; 
Sleep, that knits up the ravell 'd sleeve of care, 
The death of each day's life, sore labour's bath, 
Balm of hurt minds, great nature's second course, 
Chief nourisher in life's feast 

The lady, who has no such compunctious feelings, is 
astonished at this emotion, and asks, impatiently,- — 

What do you mean ? 

In his answer, it appears that this internal monitor 
had made so deep an impression upon him, that the 
" voice" appeared to address not himself merely, but the 
whole household : 

Still it cried, Sleep no more ! to all the house : 
Glamis hath murder'd sleep, and therefore Cawdor 
Shall sleep no more, Macbeth shall sleep no more ! 

His emotion has now totally deprived him of the power 
of thinking and acting ; but she retains both : 

Lady M. Go, get some water, 

And wash this filthy witness from your hands. 
Why did you bring these daggers from the place ? 
They must lie there. Go,^carry them, and smear 
The sleepy grooms with blood. 

Macb. I'll go no more : 

I am afraid to think what I have done ; 
Look on H again I dare not. 

When she takes the daggers, and leaves him by him- 
self, a knocking at the gate raises him from his stupor : 



208 ILLUSTRATION OF THE WORKING 

Whence is that knocking ? 
How is't with me, when every noise appals me ? 
What hands are here ? Ha ! they pluck out my eyes ! 
Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this hlood 
Clean from my hand ? No : this my hand will rather 
The multitudinous seas incarnardine, 
Making the green, one red. 

She returns, and again urges him to retire, to which 
he pays no attention. 

To know my deed, 'twere "best not know myself. 

Wake Duncan with thy knocking ! — Ay, would thou couldst ! 

The following remarks upon this subject are contained 
in a paper on the character of Macbeth, in the first 
number of the Phrenological Journal : * — " Lady 
Macbeth had no struggles before the crime : she has no 

CO 

immediate remorse after it. But Macbeth, who is re- 
presented with so much more feeling of a good tendency 
than she possesses, with some benevolence, some conscien- 
tiousness, large love of approbation, and considerable 
cautiousness, has no sooner committed the act to w r hich 
he was goaded on by his own and his wife's ambition, 
than he is seized with the utmost horror at what he has 
done. Conscience, in such minds as his, is said to be a 
treacherous monitor, inasmuch as, before the commission 
of the crime, it warns us only in the gentlest whispers, 
but afterwards raises its accusing voice like thunder. 
This is easily and beautifully explained by the phreno- 
logical doctrine, that the organs of the different faculties 
are not always in an equally active state, but come into 
activity seriatim, either from internal causes, or as they 
may be affected by external circumstances. The doctrine 
is, that, previously to the commission of crime, the pro- 
pensities leading to that crime are in a highly active 

* Pages 1C6, 107. 



OF CONSCIENCE. 209 

state ; but no sooner are these gratified, than a reaction 
takes place. The propensities, wearied with long exer- 
tion, become dormant, and the moral powers coming 
into activity, shew us the enormity we have been guilty 
of in all its horror. It is not merely conscientiousness 
that, being roused, is offended by the commission of the 
crime. Veneration, when it exists, is offended by our 
seeing that we have transgressed the laws, and done 
outrage to the commands of our Maker. Love of 
Approbation is offended, in that we feel that we have 
incurred the reprobation, the scorn, and the hatred of 
all the wise and the good. Cautiousness is alarmed at 
the evil consequences which may attend our guilt in 
this world, and the punishment which awaits it in the 
next. This, joined to Secretiveness, alarms us with 
the fear of detection, and we start at every sound, and 
mistake every bush for a minister of vengeance. In 
the case of murder, which outrages a greater number 
of the higher sentiments than almost any other crime, 
benevolence is highly offended, and, through that, all 
the social affections. All these feelings, being roused 
in the mind of the murderer after the passions that led 
to the murder have subsided, are sufficient to convert 
his mind into a nest of scorpions. The whole mixed 
state of feeling constitutes what is called remorse, and 
which probably, when those feelings are possessed in 
any considerable degree, continues to haunt the culprit 
through life, and to render him his own tormentor, even 
when he is not overtaken by public justice." 

This, then, is Conscience, and this the way in which, 
in many cases, it asserts its supremacy. The case above 
stated is one where a crime has been committed under 
the influence of selfish and inferior feelings, and contrary 
to the dictates of the higher sentiments. But cases may 
be figured, and have no doubt occurred, where the very 

s 2 



210 OFFENCES ARISING 

highest sentiments have led to crime. This is parti- 
cularly apt to occur in matters of the most important 
kind, as in relation to points of religious faith. It can- 
not be doubted that many persecutors of heretics have 
been incited to acts of the most atrocious cruelty, from 
the most firm and conscientious belief, that they were 
acting for the benefit of the souls of mankind, and even 
of those whom they most bitterly persecuted. Can it be 
doubted that this was the case with Saul the persecutor, 
when he went down to Damascus, " breathing out 
threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the 
Lord." His sincerity in this has never been questioned ; 
he firmly believeo} he was doing God service. But after 
his miraculous conversion, we can easily conceive the 
anguish of mind which this sincere and conscientious 
man must have endured, when he discoverd that Jesus 
of Nazareth, whom he persecuted, was in truth the Son 
of the living God — the Eternal King of Glory — the 
Saviour of the world. He possessed the sentiments of 
veneration, hope, wonder, benevolence, justice, andjii'mness, 
in great endowment, and in high activity, before as well 
as after his conversion ; and it was in consequence of their 
activity that he was a persecutor ; but this would afford 
him little consolation after it was declared to him how 
grievously they had been misdirected, and how deeply 
and fatally he had been in error. We may imagine his 
thoughts during the three days that elapsed before the 
visit of Ananias, while he remained blind, solitary, 
and fasting ; all his self-righteousness cast down, and 
humbled in the dust. His previous ignorance would 
not then appear to excuse him, for he would feel that 
he ought to have inquired into the evidence before he 
persecuted the followers of Christianity, and that, in 
fact, his understanding had been darkened by an evil 
heart of unbelief. Accordingly his remorse, or con- 



FROM THE HIGHER SENTIMENTS. 21! 

demning conscience, was so strong, that notwithstanding 
all his subsequent labours and sufferings in the cause of 
the Gospel, he declares himself to Timothy to have been 
" the chief of sinners." 

Here is an instance of a condemning conscience, where 
there has been no premonitive warning given to save 
from the committed act. His whole faculties, sentiments, 
intellect, and propensities, were acting in a state of 
perfect harmony, when he persecuted the Church of 
Christ. His conscience fully approved of his threaten- 
ings and slaughter of the disciples. The difference, 
therefore, between the abuses of the higher sentiments 
and those of the lower feelings seems to be this, — that 
in the former case, in many instances, there is no pre- 
monitive warning. Conscience not only does not 
disapprove, but approves, and hence the crimes arising 
from this source are perfectly frightful. The author of 
the Natural History of Enthusiasm asserts, that the 
blood shed by the Church of Rome, in direct perse- 
cution, in the loss of life in pilgrimages, and in the 
Crusades, and other religious wars, far exceeds that 
of all the other wars that ever have been waged on the 
face of the earth, or loss by calamities of earthquakes or 
volcanoes, &c. 

In the case of St Paul, his conscience was awakened, 
and a complete new turn given to all his feelings and 
ideas, by his being miraculously convinced of the fact, 
that what he had so strenuously opposed as a false 
religion, actually was the true one. But there are cases 
where no such conversion takes place. Infidel writers 
have in all ages opposed, vilified, ridiculed, and abused 
the professors and the doctrines of Christianity, and no 
reasonable doubt can exist that many of them have done 
so from a sincere belief that the whole was a system of 
delusion, that the Bible was a cunningly devised fable, 



212 ALL ARE CONSCIOUS OJF SIN." 

and its contents no more worthy of credit than the Koran 
of Mahomet, or the Vedas or Shasters of the Bramins. 
Such a writer as Voltaire, for instance, or our own 
David Hume, might go to the grave in the belief, that 
all his attacks on Christianity were calculated to benefit 
mankind, and to relieve them from the evils of priest- 
craft and superstition. But supposing such a one, 
after a long life spent in disseminating infidel opinions, 
to be on his deathbed convinced, like Rochester, by the 
arguments of some learned and able divine, that all the 
doctrines which it had been the business of his life to 
vilify and oppose were strictly and literally true, it may 
be easy to imagine — though hardly to the full extent — 
the flash of horror that would in an instant come over 
his mind, on its first becoming opened to this conviction. 
When he thought of the multitudes who had been, 
through his means, unsettled in their faith — convinced 
by his sophistry — swayed hy his opinions — awed by his 
sarcasms — turned from the truth by his sneers and 
ridicule : when he considered the increasing — the wide 
spreading mischief which had arisen, was still arising, and 
might continue to arise, from this sort of propagandism 
of unbelief, long after he was laid in his grave, and felt 
that he had no opportunity to undo even the thousandth 
part of the evil he had caused — that his career was run 
— the record closed — and nothing remaining but that 
the judge should pronounce a sentence, to be arrested 
only by an abject trembling appeal for undeserved mercy. 
It is needless to complete the picture. 

From the above it appears, that conscience is so far 
to be trusted, that when it gives its premonitive warning, 
however feebly, we may be sure that we are wrong, but 
that even when that warning is altogether wanting, we 
cannot be always sure that we are right. In case of the 
abuses of the higher sentiments, we have found, that in 



ALL ARE CONSCIOUS OF SIN. 213 

many cases there is no warning : hence these abuses are 
the most fatal, and are least likely to be removed or 
remedied. Repentance or conversion in such cases is 
rare ; and hence the care that is incumbent upon us to 
take, before we finally make up our minds to enter upon 
a course involving such fearful responsibility. 

In all cases it is believed the premonitive warning is 
less strongly and decidedly pronounced than the accusing 
voice after the act; and the experience of this is just one 
of the constraining reasons why the previous admonition, 
when given, ought to be more promptly and implicitly 
obeyed. 

Each individual is the sole custodier of his own con- 
science. No one can decide for another of what feelings 
he is conscious, or what is the extent of his knowledge of 
moral and religious duty. If the sentiments are deficient, 
the intellect narrow, the education defective, and the 
knowledge of duty imperfect, we cannot expect from 
the individual the same correct judgment of right and 
wrong, or the same correct conduct in society, as we 
look for in men whose minds are cast in a happier 
mould, whose sentiments are sound and active, their 
intellects clear, and who have been trained in the know- 
ledge and practice of good and virtuous principles. 
But this we may rely on, that the best are conscious of 
many deficiencies ; that all, whatever may be the standard 
of their moral judgments, come short of that standard 
which they themselves bear impressed upon their minds. 
Not only is it so, but those who stand the highest in 
moral and intellectual attainments, are just, on this very 
account, the most feelingly conscious of their own im- 
perfections, and are the first to acknowledge how far 
they have fallen below that standard of perfect right, 
which they see a little more clearly than others. Thus 
it is that the conscience of every man, and particularly 



214 THEOLOGICAL VIEW 

of the best men, acknowledges the truth of what is so 
forcibly stated in the Bible, that he is a sinner in the 
sight of God, and that, if brought before the tribunal of 
a perfectly righteous Judge, he has no hope of acquittal, 
except through the merits and intercession of Him who 
is mighty to save. 



CHAPTER VII. 

ON THE SCRIPTURE DOCTRINE OF HUMAN DEPRAVITY - . 

In the first chapter, I examined particularly Mr 
Combe's assumption, that the world, and especially the 
moral and intellectual condition of man, is in a state of 
slow and progressive improvement; and his argument 
derived from thence against the doctrine of man's 
original perfection, his fall from that state, and the con- 
sequent depravity of his nature. I think it was suffi- 
ciently proved, in the course of that investigation, that 
Mr Combe's views, in regard to these points, are quite 
destitute of any solid foundation. 

I could not in that preliminary chapter enter upon 
the phrenological view of the question, as it was neces- 
sary, before doing so, to state what the phrenological 
doctrines are, and what are the different powers of 
intellect, and the different propensities and principles of 
action, which in that science are stated to be compre- 
hended in the complicated system of the human faculties. 
Having now in some degree explained what phrenology 
has revealed to us in regard to these, I shall proceed 
very shortly to state, 1st, What I understand to be the 
real scriptural doctrine of the depravity of human 
nature; and, 2d, What light, if any, is thrown upon 



OF HUMAN DEPRAVITY. 215 

this subject by phrenology, and how the views which it 
affords agree with the scriptural doctrine; and in the 
course of this statement, I hope to be able to remove 
any shadow of ground which might appear to favour 
Mr Combe's objections. 

In the first place, in maintaining the entire depravity 
of human nature as it at present exists, — that is, its 
universal degeneracy from its original and destined per- 
fection, — divines do by no means intend to teach that 
there are no tendencies towards good in the human con- 
stitution. It may be, that in maintaining strenuously 
a doctrine of such importance, and one which lies at 
the foundation of our faith, some divines may have used 
language too strong, or with too little qualification ; but 
that is not to affect our estimate of the doctrine, so far 
as it is substantially true. Dr Chalmers has distinctly 
adverted to this, in his theological lectures, in a passage 
of which the following (extracted from notes taken in 
his class-room) will be found, I believe to contain the 
substance : — 

" The depravity of human nature is the initial article 
in Christianity. Christianity is, in truth, the religion 
of sinners.* The world is in a state of enmity to God, 
in a state of ruin and decay. Consciousness tells us of 
the state ; conscience of its guilt ; but not perfectly, 
without the aids of the Word and the Spirit. There 
are too sweeping denunciations made on this subject by 
some theologians. They have put the conscience into 
a state of discrepancy with the fact. We must temper 
the representations of a fierce and flaming orthodoxy, 
and not needlessly exasperate the antipathies of men. 
While we maintain the entire depravity of human 
nature, yet still we must admit that there is virtue in 

" I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." — 
Matthew, ix. 13. 



216 PHRENOLOGICAL VIEW 

the world. We must admit the real virtues of 
antiquity, in the continence of Scipio, the devotion of 
Regulus, the morality of Socrates, Plato, &c. * Some 
have resolved these heathen virtues into a love of 
applause ; but there is a native sense of integrity in 
many. Domestic duties are in many instances per- 
formed from principle, and disquietude is felt if they are 
not attended to. We cannot deny that some men are 
actuated by motives of benevolence, philanthropy, &c. 
But the more this is admitted, so much the more evident 
is it that man has fallen from his original righteousness. 
When man is charged with guilt, this is rested on his 
ungodliness. If this count is made out, it is enough. 
Examine the best moral constitution of any man on 
earth, we may find benevolence, integrity, &c. but no 
loyalty to God." 

This, then, is the doctrine, that the depravity of man 
consists, in the first place, in his having forsaken God, 
and that from this has flowed, as a necessary conse- 
quence, all his other depravity. No doubt there are 
degrees in depravity, and some have fallen to greater 
depths of degradation than others; but this is true 
universally, that all mankind, without exception, are in 
a state immeasurably below the original perfection of 
their nature. " The moral question," says Dr Chalmers, 
" between God pjd man, is one thing, and between man 
and man is another thing. One man may manifest 
kindness, and another malice, but both are alienated 
from God. The relative distances and elevations of the 
earth sink into insignificance when compared with the 
immensity of the distance of the earth from the sun ; so 
it is in the moral condition of man. One man is more 
moral than another, but the differences are incon- 

* '•' These, not having the law, are a law unto themselves." — Romans : 
ii. 14. 



OF HUMAN DEPRAVITY. 217 

siderable, when compared with the immense interval 
that separates all from a state of perfect allegiance to 
God." 

Holding this, then, to be the doctrine, I shall endea- 
vour to illustrate it in different ways. First, in regard 
to our original state : man was created in the image of, 
God, and while he remained in paradise, enjoyed an 
intercourse with him far nearer and more perfect than 
we at present possess. Hence, he had a more accurate 
knowledge of the will of God, and more constraining 
motives for its performance. He was formed for inter- 
course with and an entire dependence upon God, and 
while he remained in that state, he was perfect. He 
walked in the sight of God ; and having inclinations 
agreeable to his will, he could not act otherwise than 
according to it. In this state there could be no imper- 
fection, and no sin. 

The phrenological view of such a state would be this : 
— Having all his faculties and sentiments in perfection, 
these would always lead him " to seek to God" as their 
highest object. Veneration would impress him constantly 
with ideas of the greatness of God and his own depen- 
dence upon him, and lead him in all things to inquire 
after his will, and to obey it. Wonder would be con- 
stantly excited by new discoveries of the character of 
God, and the greatness and variety of his works. Ideality 
would receive constant delight from the unfading perfec- 
tion of the one, and the splendour and beauty of the 
other. Benevolence and conscientiousness would instinc- 
tively lead him to that conduct towards his fellow-men, 
which would conduce most to their happiness, being that 
which God designed when he implanted such sentiments 
in his mind; the one making those actions a pleasure, 
which the other would point out to be a duty. An 
enlightened self-esteem would lead to the same conduct, 

T 



218 PHRENOLOGICAL VIEW 

as the best means of promoting his own happiness. Acting 
constantly under a sense of the presence of God, he would 
constantly endeavour so to act as to obtain his approba- 
tion ; while cautiousness would lead him to avoid whatever 
might offend, and hope would point smiling to the delight- 
ful future, which nothing could disturb while he continued 
in obedience. The social qualities of adhesiveness, and 
the love of offspring, would of course lead, in private, and 
with relation to a more confined class of duties, to the 
same perfect and unblamable conduct, as the other senti- 
ments we have mentioned in relation to their more 
extended sphere. Thus, all the faculties which could 
operate in any way as motives upon the conduct, would 
in this situation lead directly and necessarily to one result, 
— a perfect submission to the divine will. 

But in this state man did not continue. He had his 
choice of remaining in a state of dependence upon God, 
or of leaving him and trusting to his own resources. 
He was induced, by what means we need not here inquire, 
to prefer the latter. He was seduced from his allegiance. 
He disobeyed a positive command, and in so doing, was 
guilty of an overt act of rebellion. He was, in conse- 
quence, banished from that intercourse with God which 
he had hitherto enjoyed, and sent into the world to 
reap the fruits of the choice he bad made. 

The change produced by this may be compared to that 
which the earth would sustain if separated from its con- 
nection with the sun, — if it were driven or attracted by 
any extraneous force from its present orbit. The earth 
and all its productions remaining the same, they would 
soon degenerate when deprived of the warmth and light 
of the solar rays. 

In like manner, man, after the Fall, remained the same 
creature as he was before, but his situation was altered. 
He retained the same faculties, but the highest of these 



OF THE FALL. 219 

were deprived of their highest, their appropriate objects. 
His veneration and wonder might still lead him to con- 
template the perfections of God through the medium of 
his works, but they no longer enjoyed the perfect grati- 
fication resulting from his immediate presence. He no 
longer acted under a constant sense of that presence, 
and consequently God was now " not in all his thoughts." 
But more than this, he no longer looked up to God with 
unmingled, undisturbed feelings of veneration, love, and 
hope. Fear mingled in his thoughts of Him whom he had 
offended, and what we fear, we soon learn to hate, or at 
least endeavour to banish from our minds. Hence, to 
do His will — to obtain His approbation — was no longer 
his supreme wish — his earnest and constant endeavour. 
In the same way, his feelings towards his fellow-creatures 
were likewise disturbed and perverted. These were no 
longer feelings of perfect love. It is natural to suppose, 
that as both the man and the woman had participated in 
the guilt of the Fall, they would soon be led to mutual 
recrimination.* This would naturally lead to angry and 
unpleasant thoughts of each other, and occasionally to 
mutual offences. In every view, therefore, both of duty 
to God and duty to man, the human faculties, by the 
change which had taken place, were turned away from 
their proper objects, and their proper modes of exercise. 
From the moment of his first departure from God, man 
had no longer the same clear knowledge of His will, nor 
the same constraining motives to obey it. His faculties, 
deprived of those objects, for the contemplation and 
enjoyment of which they were primarily intended, 
attached themselves to those which were improper, and 
acting with irregular and misdirected energy, necessarily 



* Something of this kind appears in the excuse offered by Adam for 
his disobedience, Gen. iii. 12. 



220 PHRENOLOGICAL VIEW OF 

led to evil ; and thus he unavoidably fell from one degree 
of depravity to another. 

But the evils of the Fall did not end here. The 
spiritual and moral degradation which it produced 
brought necessarily in its train the physical. The 
influence which retained the mental powers in their just 
balance being removed, the disorder would constantly 
tend to increase. The laws of propagation (admitted, 
nay, insisted on by Mr Combe as part of his system,) 
communicating to the children the disordered state of 
faculties which the parents themselves suffered under, 
necessarily continued, and, except under very favourable 
circumstances, increased and deepened the features of the 
original degradation. The moral and religious feelings, 
not receiving their proper gratifications, would languish 
and decay ; while the lower propensities, kept in constant 
exercise, and constantly in view of their appropriate 
objects, would rise into an unnatural and fearful pre- 
dominance. Each generation, as it succeeded, would 
thus become not only more alienated from God, but 
physically more imperfect, and mentally more unfavour- 
ably constituted than the last ; until, finally, as we are 
told, " the earth was filled with violence, and the thoughts 
of man's heart was only evil continually." 

There is evidently nothing in this that is not perfectly 
consistent with all that Phrenology teaches, and indeed 
nothing but this will afford an explanation of our present 
condition. We see that the present state of the human 
faculties is much more imperfect than the high nature of 
some of them would lead us to expect. It is acknowledged 
by all the phrenological writers, that the higher senti- 
ments are generally weaker than the lower propensities ; 
and that, in a great majority of our race, some one or 
more of the former are eminently defective. From this, 
it appears undeniable, that the faculties have been thrown 



THE FALL AND ITS CONSEOUEXCES. 221 

off their proper poise and balance. But this is not all. 
The faculties are not only ill balanced, they are all 
individually imperfect. None of them act spontane- 
ously as they ought, nor perform their functions at once 
with ease and satisfaction. Some are dormant and 
sluggish, some are over-active. Some require to be 
stimulated, some to be restrained. The phrenological 
doctrine of their alternate activity, of their becoming 
active seriatim, and requiring alternate periods of exer- 
tion and rest, is of itself a proof of degeneracy, and a 
necessary cause of irregular manifestation. In order to 
perfection, they ought to be constantly in a state ready 
for use ; never exerted when not required, and never 
wanting in power when the occasion for action occurs. 
Is this the case with the human faculties now, in any 
individual, or is there any probability that it ever will 
be so ? 

The necessity which is universally acknowledged, of the 
cultivation of the mental powers by means of education 
and moral training, and the utter sterility of mind which 
appears when this education is neglected, is a proof of 
degeneracy. The same appears in the necessity of 
applying, to a great part of our race, the active restraints 
of law ; the impossibility of preventing crimes by all the 
modes of inculcating moral and religious duty, or even, 
when these fail, by all the terrors of punishment ; the 
necessity of a constantly renewed appeal to the higher 
sentiments, through the institutions of religion, by 
exhortation, by preaching, by an application of all the 
moral motives that can operate upon the feelings of men. 
And, perhaps, even the strongest proof of all is the 
astounding fact, that even the revelation of a Saviour, 
and a free offer of pardon to sinners, has yet only par- 
tially succeeded in reclaiming the race, and that a large, 
by far the larger portion still obstinately reject and loathe 

t 2 



222 PROOFS OF DEGENERACY* 

a method of unmerited salvation, the only one suited 
to their present condition, and the only one capable 
of bringing them back to that God whom they have 
forsaken. 

The present and past depravity of man is a fact univer- 
sally admitted ; but another question remains, — Is our 
nature capable of rectification by the development of its 
own elements ? This is the real point to be determined, 
for all the rest is too obvious to admit of dispute. 
Divines deny that man is capable of rectifying the disor- 
ders of the world by his own exertions. Mr Combe 
maintains that he is, and that a knowledge of phrenology, 
and the natural laws, will enable him to do so. As all 
that is to be done in this way is still to be spoken of in 
the future sense, it is impossible for Mr Combe to prove 
how far this assumption is correct, and to what extent 
the condition of man may be improved by the means 
alluded to. We can only speak from probabilities, and 
from experience of the past ; and these are all against the 
assumption that any great or decisive improvement is 
likely to be effected in this way on the generality of man- 
kind. With every disposition to think highly of the 
doctrines of Phrenology, believing them to be substantially 
true, and that they will ultimately come to be considered 
as of high importance, I cannot see any rational grounds 
for believing, that, taken by themselves, these doctrines 
will be more successful than those of other philosophical 
systems, in remedying the numerous disorders that have 
crept into the world. Some of these systems have been 
founded on truths equally undeniable as those of Phre- 
nology : and, on comparing them carefully together, 
many of the principles they inculcate are identically the 
same as those now maintained by the phrenologists ; but 
they have failed, and Phrenology will fail also. Granting, 
what I can by no means admit, that the natural laws, as 



MEANS OF IMPROVEMENT. 223 

expounded by Mr Combe, are calculated to lead to 
clearer views of duty than other systems ; this is but a 
small part of what is wanted. The great questions are, 
What are their sanctions ? and supposing them to be 
known, What is the probability of their being obeyed ? 
The great desideratum is, to supply sufficient motives 
to act up to the views of duty we possess. 

The answer to the first question must be, that the 
natural laws, properly speaking, have no sanctions. They 
carry with them, to be sure, certain consequences, — that is 
to say, if w T e act in a certain way, we shall reap a certain 
quantity of enjoyment, and if we act otherwise, we shall 
be visited with a certain portion of suffering ; but as 
these are to occur in the present life, and as (the laws 
being known) their amount would be clearly foreseen 
and determined, the whole would, of course, become 
matter of calculation, and it would be left to every one's 
choice to obey them or not, every one being at perfect 
liberty to disobey any particular law, provided he made 
up his mind to endure the penalty. 

This being the case, supposing the whole " natural 
laws" to be at this moment engraved on tables of brass, 
and made known to every individual of the human race 
— supposing all the difficulties of discovering them to be 
got over, and that they were ascertained and demon- 
strated as clearly as the rules of geometry in Euclid, — 
is any one so ignorant of human nature, as to believe 
that they would on that account be universally obeyed, 
or that the knowledge of them would be in all cases 
made use of, to promote the good of the species ? 

Mr Combe has himself anticipated this question, and 
answered it in the negative. He admits, in one passage,* 
— what, indeed, he could not reasonably deny — that a 

* Constitution of Man, people's edition, p. 10, col. 2. 



224 PROBABLE RESULTS OF 

mere knowledge of the natural laws is not sufficient to 
ensure observance of them. But is not this at once 
admitting, in substance, that his system is radically and 
incurably defective ? He says, that " practical training, 
and the aid of every motive that can interest the feelings, 
are necessary to lead individuals to obey the natural 
laws." What motives does he here allude to, that are 
not included in, or do not necessarily arise from, a 
knowledge of the laws themselves, — a knowledge of our 
own constitution, and of the relations subsisting between 
it and external objects ? If such constraining motives 
do exist, is it not evident, that in these, and not in a 
mere knowledge of the natural laws, lies the true and 
only hope of raising man from his present state of ruin 
and degradation ? He goes on to say — " Religion, in 
particular, may furnish motives highly conducive to this 
obedience." Then why, it may be asked, does he 
exclude from his system all considerations of a religious 
nature? Why does he exclude those considerations 
which even natural religion is calculated to furnish, and 
which have been admitted even by heathens, — the belief 
in a future state, and the sanctions of future rewards 
and punishments ? These, it seems, do not fall within 
the object of his book ; # but why do they not ? Is it 
not evident, that by omitting them, he has voluntarily, 
and of set purpose, founded his system on a defective 
basis, and excluded that which is alone capable of 
supplying the defect ? 

The real question, after all, is a question of motives. 
We are not so destitute of the knowledge of what is 
right, as of inclination to act up to the knowledge we 
possess. For one who acts wrong from ignorance, there 
are hundreds who do so from the perversity or weakness 

* Constitution of Man, p. 7, col. 1. 



A KNOWLEDGE OF THE NATURAL LAWS. '225 

of their nature. This complaint is as old as the time of 
Horace : — 

Video meliora proboque. 
Deteriora sequor. * 

It is echoed by St Paul, — 

" The good that I would, I do not, - but the evil 
which I would not, that I do. 

" For I delight in the law of God after the inward 
man ; but I see another law in my members warring 
against the law in my mind, and bringing me into 
captivity unto the law of sin," &c. f 

But one fact is worth a thousand arguments and 
general statements ; and, accordingly, Mr Combe lays 
great stress on individual cases. In particular, he refers 
to the case of a benevolent individual, who, in his 
anxiety to carry into practical effect the views of Mr 
Owen, injured his constitution so far by severe labour, 
as to bring on spitting of blood. He states that, " being 
now unable for such severe exertion, he gave up his whole 
time to directing and instructing the people, — and for 
two or three weeks spoke the whole day, the effusion of 
blood from his lungs still continuing ."% The consequences 
were such as might have been expected. This mode of 
treatment brought on a confirmed pulmonary disease, of 
which he died in the course of a few months. 

It will at once be admitted that the conduct of this 
person was in the highest degree irrational. The 
excuse of ignorance can hardly be received ; at least it 
is believed, that examples of such extreme ignorance are 
rare. But granting that, in this instance, the error was 
caused by ignorance, what will be said of the case I 
am now going to state ? 

* I see the right, and I approve it too ; 

Condemn the wrong, and yet the wrong pursue, 
t Rom. yii. 19, 22, 23. 
% Constitution of Man, p. 38, col. 2. 



226 CASE OF DISOBEDIENCE 

What will the reader say, when I mention that Dr 
Spurzheim, the coadjutor of Gall — the joint labourer 
with that great man in the field of phrenological dis- 
covery — the author of the Catechism of the Natural Laws, 
from whom, Mr Combe acknowledges, he derived his 
first ideas on the subject, brought on the illness which 
resulted in his death, by what Mr Combe himself would 
describe as a flagrant act of disobedience of these very 
laws ? The following account of this event is given in 
a letter addressed to Mr Combe, by Mr Nahum Capen, 
of Boston, dated November 15, 1832, inserted in the 
Phrenological Journal, vol. viii. p. 127. 

" It is with the deepest feelings of grief, that I state, 
that Dr Spurzheim is no more. 

" He died in this city, on the 10th instant, at 11 
o'clock, p. m. after an illness of about three weeks. On 
the 17th September he commenced a course of lectures 
on Phrenology in this city, and soon after, another 
course at Harvard University, Cambridge. These 
lectures occupied six evenings in the week. He 
delivered, besides, a course of five lectures before the 
Medical Faculty, on the anatomy of the brain, in the 
day time. 

" The subject having met with the most favourable 
reception, he laboured, with great earnestness and pains, 
to elucidate its principles. He, being personally admired 
by our citizens, his time and presence were in constant 
demand. Added to these continued engagements, our 
peculiarly changeable climate had an unfavourable 
influence on his constitution. Sudden changes exposed 
him to cold ; and an incautious transition from a warm 
lecture-room to the evening air, was attended with 
debilitating effects. This variety of causes, brought on 
at first slight indisposition, which, if it had been 
attended to, might have been easily checked. Regard- 



OF THE NATURAL LAWS. 227 

ing his illness of less consequence than the delivery of 
his lectures, he exerted himself for several days, when 
prudence required an entire cessation from labour. 
This was the fatal step : cold produced fever, and 
this imprudence seemed to settle the fever in the system. 

" He was confined to his room about fifteen days, 
which time his disease gradually assumed a more alarm- 
ing aspect until death. He was averse to all active 
treatment from the beginning, and resorted to simple 
drinks," &c. 

A similar account of the same event is given in a 
letter of the 16 th November, received by Mr Combe 
from Dr Robert M'Kibben of New York. " His 
illness continued for some time after having been 
chilled, and he persisted in lecturing, until the last 
lecture or two he was quite obscure and confused, and 
evidently labouring under great weakness. No persua- 
sion of his friends, however, could prevail on him to 
desist, until the Wednesday fortnight before his decease, 
when the fever had increased so much as to confine him 
to his bed. He would use no remedies, though urged 
to do so by the medical gentlemen who most anxiously 
attended him : Lavements were the only things he 
would use, and he objected that the British and Ameri- 
can practice was too active, unfortunately forgetting the 
climate he was in. The symptoms were very obscure 
in the accession, but they gradually assumed the form 
of synochus, with great nervous depression, and he 
gradually got worse, until the fatal catastrophe 
occurred," 

Now, here we have a man, as Mr Combe will admit, 
of the highest intellectual and moral eminence, — a 
physician, — acquainted thoroughly, if any human being 
can be said to be so, with the laws of his own constitu- 
tion, and its relations with external objects; and yet 



228 THE NATURAL LAWS 

we find him, in the important point of his own health, 
acting directly in the teeth of these laws, in obstinate 
defiance of all warning, and bringing upon himself, as 
the immediate consequence, disease, ending in death. I 
state all this as the undoubted fact, without the most 
remote intention of casting the slightest shade of disre- 
spect on the memory of Dr Spurzheim ; to whom, on 
the contrary, I would do all honour. But the point I 
aim at is this, — if such a man is found to have so erred, 
who can ever be free from error? And what utter 
insanity is it to expect, not that a large portion of man- 
kind, but that all mankind, will, at some period, be so 
enlightened, as to be safe from falling into such errors. 

How long will it be, under Mr Combe's system, 
before mankind in general shall become equally 
enlightened on the subject of the natural laws, as 
Dr Spurzheim ? But we see that, even granting this 
were the case, our situation would be little if at all 
mended ; for we here find Dr Spurzheim himself, whom 
it is not too much to call the author of this very system, 
erring as deeply and as fatally as the worthy and 
benevolent, but ignorant Owenite. 

If the natural laws were at this moment universally 
known, it is possible that a certain portion of the best 
constituted of mankind — those whose faculties and dis- 
positions are most happily balanced and best com- 
mingled — would conform to them from inclination ; 
another, and perhaps a larger portion, might obey them 
from a sense of duty ; a third portion might obey them 
from the selfish motives proposed by Mr Combe (the 
highest motive which he, in any case, holds out for such 
obedience being, that we may expect ultimately to reap 
from them the greatest harvest of enjoyment ;) and a 
fourth portion might obey, to avoid the pains and evils 
which they would see to be the consequence of infringing 



LIABLE TO ABUSE. 229 

them. But all these classes together would amount, it 
is to be feared, to but a small numerical portion of man- 
kind. Mr Combe is aware, that in the great majority 
of the race, the lower propensities are greatly superior 
in strength and activity to the higher and peculiarly 
human faculties ; and this being the case, is it not pro- 
bable, that the knowledge of " nature and her laws" 
would be turned by such persons into the means of 
gratifying their strongest inclinations ? 

The laws and their consequences being all thoroughly 
known, the generality of mankind would act as they do 
now ; and seeing clearly the right path, would follow, 
as at present, the wrong. The depravity of human 
nature would be too strong for the laws. Some would 
disobey them from the mere spirit of contradiction, or 
to please a wayward inclination ; some to gratify a pre- 
dominant propensity or craving passion ; some would 
partake of the enticing cup of present pleasure, though 
certain death, at a limited distance, stared them in the 
face, as immense numbers do at this day. 

I may here refer to the following passage from Bishop 
Butler, (quoted by Mr Combe for a different purpose,) 
as directly confirming the above view ; and it is impos- 
sible for Mr Combe, on his principles, to produce an 
answer to it. " In the present state, all which we enjoy, 
and a great part of what we suffer, is put in our own 
power. For pleasure and pain are the consequences of 
our actions, and we are endowed, by the Author of our 
nature, with capacities of foreseeing these consequences." 
"■I know not that we have anv one kind or degree of 
enjoyment, but by the means of our own actions. And 
by prudence and care we may, for the most part, pass 
our days in tolerable ease and quiet ; or, on the contrary, 
we may, by rashness, ungoverned passion, wilfulness, or 
even by negligence, make ourselves as miserable as ever 

u 



230 PROBABLE RESULTS 

we please. And many do please to make themselves 
extremely miserable ; i. e. they do what they know before- 
hand will render them so. They follow those ways, the 
fruit of which they know, by instruction, example, expe- 
rience, will be disgrace, and poverty, and untimely 
death. This, every one observes to be the 

GENERAL COURSE OF THINGS," &C 

In the above passage, Bishop Butler has stated, in a 
few words, all that is of any practical utility in Mr 
Combe's system ; and he has shewn, in addition, that, as 
human nature is constituted, it is impossible to restrain 
men from vice by any such considerations. But there 
is a farther view which is well deserving of our notice. 

Knowledge is desirable, certainly, when joined to, and 
properly directed by good principles ; but knowledge, 
merely by itself, is a two-edged weapon. There is a 
knowledge of evil, as well as a knowledge of good ; and 
the " natural laws," if thoroughly known, would disclose 
the one as well as the other. Though knowledge is 
power, most assuredly it is not virtue.* Some would 
study these laws for no other purpose than that of dis- 
covering new and untried methods of disobeying them, 
and snatch, as they do now, short moments of frantic 
excitement, at the expense of early death, or lasting dis- 
ease and misery. It is not necessary that the pains to 
be avoided are removed to the other side of the grave ; 
many will undoubtedly brave them with all their terrors, 
even in the present life. It will with some be, as now, 
a point of honour to do so, and many may think it a 
proof of a mean and cowardly spirit, to be deterred from 
an enjoyment which they covet, by the prospect of evils 

* See the Tables and Calculations of M. Guerry, proving, that in 
those parts of France where education has made the greatest progress, 
the proportion of crime is the greatest, and that in those districts where 
there is least education, crimes are the most rare. 



OF THE NATURAL LAWS. 231 

which a man of ordinary constancy may be able to bear, 
and from which, at the worst, when he finds them to 
become intolerable, he may escape at any time, by an 
act for which, however criminal, Mr Combe's system 
provides no punishment,— Suicide. 

Many undoubtedly there are, and these even not the 
most degraded and vicious of mankind, whom nothing 
will prevent from gratifying their most craving propen- 
sities, and tasting present enjoyment, let the conse- 
quences be what they may. In the heyday of youth, 
when the blood boils in the veins, no consideration of 
evils to be endured in the present life will deter them 
from tasting the cup of pleasure — or, when once they 
taste, from drinking even to the dregs. With them, 
the great craving is for excitement. 

They scorn in apathy to float or dream 
Down listless Satisfaction's torpid stream ; 
But dare, alone, in vent'rous bark to glide 
Down turbulent Delight's tempestuous tide.* 

And they will do so, although at the bottom they see a 
gulf which they believe is to swallow them up for ever. 

To many such, there will appear even a bravery in 
despising laws which have no other sanction than a little 
corporeal suffering in the present life ; and companions 
will encourage one another to disobedience, by the same 
motives which Lady Macbeth urges upon her lord to 
induce him to the murder of Duncan. " Art thou 
afeard," such a one may say, — 

Art thou afeard 
To be the same in thine own act and deed 
As thou art in desire ? Wouldst thou have that ' 
Which thou esteem'st the prime solace of life, 
And live a coward in thine own esteem, 
Letting I dare not wait upon I would, 
Like the poor cat i' the adage ? 

* Pursuits of Literature. 



232 THE NATURAL LAWS 

The young, the thoughtless, and those endowed with 
strong passions, will never learn wisdom so as to be of 
any practical use, except from the stern teacher, expe- 
rience. Of them it must always be true, what the poet 
has applied to a gay and unfortunate monarch : 

Fair lauglis the man, and soft the zephyr blows, 
While, proudly riding- o'er the azure realm, 

In gallant trim, the gilded vessel goes — 

Youth on the prow, and pleasure at the helm, 

Regardless of the sweeping whirlwind's sway 

That, hush'd in grim repose, expects his evening prey.*' 

Were the natural laws and all their consequences 
universally known, they would be studied to procure 
new and ever varied modes of present enjoyment — to 
procure the means of gratifying the lower, even the 
very lowest, propensities ; and the consequence would 
be, that vice, immorality, and debauchery of all kinds, 
w r ould be carried to a height, of which, at present, we 
can have no adequate conception. The world would be 
ransacked for condiments more piquant to the taste than 
Curry or Cayenne — for intoxicating substances more 
powerful than Alcohol or Opium — for wines more deli- 
cious and exhilarating than Champagne or Burgundy. 
The present generation would find themselves mere 
children in the arts of procuring, heightening, prolong- 
ing, and sustaining to the utmost extent every form and 
mode of sensual enjoyment. 

We would see new varieties of hells, suited to our 
increased knowledge, and consequently extended sphere 
of enjoyment, in which every resource of human inge- 
nuity would be exhausted for the destruction of time, 
talents, fame, fortune, health, and life itself. We would 
have establishments for the rich, more luxurious and 
more seducing than the gayest of our modern clubs ; and 

* Gray's Bard^ 



NO SAFEGUARDS TO VIRTUE. 233 

beverages more palatable, cheaper, and more exciting, 
than the poison which is at present dealt so liberally 
from our gin palaces, for the poor. We would not, like 
Thalaba, require to go to Tunis, nor to search under 
the sea, for the Dom-Daniel. We would have Dom- 
Daniels of our own in every street, crowded by whole 
hecatombs of more willing victims than ever prostrated 
themselves before the car of Juggernaut. 

But if there were, as there undoubtedly would be, 
some, who would willingly go all this length, and brave 
all consequences in the mad pursuit of transitory plea- 
sure, there are others, who, possessing more Cautiousness, 
— certainly not more virtue, — would trim their vessels in 
the voyage of life more warily, and endeavour to compro- 
mise the matter between the love of enjoyment and the 
dictates of prudence. These would study the natural 
laics, to discover how far they might be able to go in 
vice, and yet return unharmed — to ascertain what 
amount of sensual pleasure they might be able to enjoy, 
without the entire destruction of life and health, and the 
future comfort of their worldly existence, The question 
would be, not what they might be able to enjoy consis- 
tently with innocence and duty, but what they might be 
able to enjoy with safety. 

Were man endowed with universal knowledge of the 
capacities of his own constitution, and the powers of 
external nature, and freed, as Mr Combe seems to 
desire, from all the checks arising from fear of death 
and the prospect of an existence to come, while his 
faculties and dispositions remain as they now are, every 
one would of course rush forward to reap as much 
enjoyment as he could in the present life ; and what 
kind of enjoyments these would in general be, we may 
easily suppose, when we have it on the authority of Mr 
Combe himself, that, with the generality of mankind, 

u 2 



234 PHRENOLOGY AFFORDS NO MEANS 

the higher feelings and intellectual facilities are weak 
and defective, and the lower propensities greatly pre- 
dominant. To one so constituted, it would be in vain 
to point out the pleasures arising from the cultivation 
of the intellect, or those high and generous feelings 
which form the chief distinction of our race. He would 
tell you, that his happiness is not placed in these, but in 
the gratification of his appetites, and in sensual and 
epicurean enjoyment — in the destruction of innocent 
animals in the chase — or in the still more exciting 
pursuits of war and bloodshed. You can have no 
answer to this. It is needless to point out the delights 
of peace and virtue to one who cares nothing about 
them — or to depict the future pain and misery he is 
bringing on himself, to one who sets all such considera- 
tions at defiance. Speak of death — Mr Combe has 
argued away, as far as he is able, all the effect which 
this circumstance is fitted to produce, and he carefully 
excludes every motive arising from the prospect of a 
future state. He represents, indeed, the evil which 
a man who follows such a course will bring upon his 
children, and upon the human race in general ; but he 
might as well address the winds. What does the selfish 
man care for his posterity, or for the welfare of his race ? 
If he will not be deterred from a life of vicious pleasure 
by a prospect of the evils it will bring upon himself, will 
he be stopped in his career by the consideration that his 
guilt is to be expiated in the person of another ? 

Supposing, then, that Christianity, as at present 
taught, were abolished, and the " Natural Laws" erected 
in its room, the concerns of life, confined to the present 
world, would become, as I have said, mere matter of 
calculation. But men, according to their predominant 
feelings, would calculate differently. While a few would 
undoubtedly prefer the enjoyments of sentiment and 



OF REGENERATING THE WORLD. 235 

intellect to those of sense and passion, some would, as 
now, prefer a short life of high excitement, and endea- 
vour to crowd into as narrow a compass as they could, 
all the delights of which their nature was susceptible ; 
while others, like true epicures, would wish to prolong 
the feast, and while, like Solomon, they " withheld not 
their heart from any joy," would partake of these so 
cautiously, as not to bring the course of their delights 
to a too abrupt conclusion. This last may be thought 
the more rational and more prudent plan, and would 
certainly be more consistent with the natural laws ; but 
it is just as far removed as the other from that which is 
alone worthy of regard, — moral and virtuous conduct. 
What, then, becomes of the fine drawn speculations of 
Mr Combe, as to the regeneration of the world by 
means of the natural laws ? 

Christianity presents not only the clearest views of 
duty, but also the most powerful motives to obedience ; 
and if those, enforced by every consideration that can 
influence the mind of man, have not been hitherto suffi- 
cient to restrain the evils arising from perverse inclination 
and unbridled passion, will any fact revealed by Phreno- 
logy have this effect ? If men have not been prevented 
from crime by the constraining motives of the fear of 
God, and the love of a Saviour — the prospect of divine 
wrath on the one hand, and eternal felicity on the other — 
will their headlong passions be quelled, and their way- 
ward propensities kept in check, by the doctrine of the 
supremacy of the moral sentiments and intellect ? Is 
there any thing in this doctrine more attractive than the 
speculations of Plato or Socrates, on the Beauty of Virtue 
and the happiness of living according to nature ? Will 
the irreligious man be convinced and rendered pious, by 
being informed that there are in the brain organs of 
Veneration, Hope, and Wonder ? Will the thief be 



236 TRUE REMEDY FOR HUMAN DEPRAVITY. 

arrested in his designs, by appealing to an organ of 
Conscientiousness, and the statement that this principle 
is superior to Acquisitiveness and Secretiveness, for that 
these organs lie at the base of the brain, while that of the 
former lies on the coronal surface ? There seems to be 
here so slender a ground to serve as the foundation of 
so vast an edifice — so immense a distance between the 
admitted premises and the desired conclusion, — that I 
am at a loss to conceive how any sane individual can 
seriously believe for a moment, that upon such a foun- 
dation as this he can be able to rear a system for the 
recovery of a lost world. 

But though it were certain, that, by the means pro- 
posed, man were capable in some respects of improving 
his condition, one thing is clear, that if we are right in 
our account of human depravity, no effort of man can 
avail to remedy that evil, because it must ever remain 
impossible for him to remove its cause. That cause, as 
has been explained, is the alienation of man from God, 
banishment from his favour and presence, the dissolving 
of that intercourse and connection with God, in which 
he was originally placed, in which state only his faculties 
were furnished with their highest objects, and where 
only he could use them in unison with the divine will. 
Created for a state of dependence upon a Being of 
infinite perfection, nothing can remove the evils caused 
by his revolt, but restoring him to the same state. It is 
needless to ask if the means proposed by Mr Combe will 
effect this. All his pretended remedies are mere pallia- 
tives, utterly powerless to effect any important relief while 
this grand evil remains unredressed. As well might it 
be attempted, in the case formerly supposed, of the earth 
being removed from the cheering influence of the sun, 
to supply the want of that influence by artificial means, 
as to remove the evils of man's lot, and the defects of his 



OBJECTION TO THE PARADISAICAL STATE. 237 

present state, by such wretched expedients. As, in the 
one case, nothing could effect a satisfactory change, but 
to restore the globe to its place ; so, in the other, nothing 
can remedy the condition of man, but bringing him 
back to that God whose favour alone is life. Almighty 
power alone is capable of effecting this revolution, and 
Almighty power has been exerted to effect it. A free 
offer of restoration is held out to those who will accept 
it, but so deep seated is the evil, as to take away from 
many even the desire of being restored. 

It is needless to carry this speculation farther. Those 
who are willing to understand the doctrine we maintain, 
will see that it is consistent with phrenological as with all 
other known truth. Those who are determined not to 
understand, are proof against any reasoning. It is 
needless to continue the discussion for their sakes: "They 
are joined to their idols : let them alone.' 5 



CHAPTER VIII. 

OBJECTION TO THE PARADISAICAL STATE OF OUR FIRST PARENTS CONSIDERED. 

Mr Combe, like the divines, seems to consider the 
doctrine of the corruption of human nature as the test 
by which his system is to stand or fall. Hence he directs 
against it every argument his ingenuity can devise. In 
connection with this doctrine it is generally held, that 
man was placed, at his creation, in a paradise, from 
which pain and death were excluded, and that those 
evils were afterwards brought upon him in consequence 
of his fall. Mr Combe objects to this, that man is 
endowed with certain faculties, which fit him for a 



238 

scene of danger, pain, and death, and which would be 
unsuited to a state into which these were not allowed 
to enter. 

In his general account of the faculties, Mr Combe 
states, with regard to Combativeness, that " it obviously 
adapts man to a world in which danger and difficulty 
abound ;" and that Destructiveness " places man in 
harmony with death and destruction, which are woven 
into the system of the sublunary creation." If Mr 
Combe had been imbued with the true philosophic spirit 
to which he lays claim, he would have been satisfied 
with stating this to be the case in relation to the present 
system of things ; and had he done so, his statement 
would have been liable to no objection, for so far it is 
unquestionably true. 

But Mr Combe is not satisfied with this. He has 
overstepped the proper boundaries of legitimate inquiry, 
and most unphilosophically attempted to rear up an 
argument against a doctrine with which he had nothing 
to do. After mentioning what is quite true, that 
Cautiousness is " admirably adapted to the nature of the 
external world," he adds, — " It is clear that the gift of 
an organ of Cautiousness implied that man was to be 
placed in the field of danger. It is adapted to a world 
like the present, but would be at variance with a scene 
into which no evil could intrude" 

The tendency of this last remark is sufficiently obvious; 
but to remove all doubt, Mr Combe adds the following 
paragraph, in which he openly attacks the opinions on 
this subject held by divines, — opinions which, whether 
they are true or false, lie beyond the province of fair 
philosophical inquiry. 

Referring to the propensities which have just been 
mentioned, he says, — " Theologians who enforce the 
corruption of human nature would do well to consider 



TO THE PARADISAICAL STATE. 239 

whether man, as originally constituted, possessed the 
organs of these propensities or not. If he did possess 
them, it will be incumbent on them to shew the objects 
of them in a world where there icas no sorrow, sin, 
death, or danger. If these organs were bestowed after 
the Fall, the question will remain to be solved, whether 
man, with new organs added to his brain, and new 
propensities to his mind, continued the same being as 
when these did not form parts of his constitution. Or, 
finally, they may consider whether the existence of these 
organs, and of an external world adapted to them, does 
not prove that man, as he now exists, is actually the 
same being as when he was created, and that his 
corruption consists in the tendency to abuse his faculties, 
and not in any inherent viciousness attributable to his 
nature itself." 

This passage proves Mr Combe either to be entirely 
ignorant or entirely neglectful of the proper objects of 
philosophical inquiry, and of the boundary which 
separates its legitimate sphere from those subjects into 
which reason is unable to penetrate. He has over- 
stepped this boundary. He has departed completely 
from the course which he had marked out for himself in 
his preface. He there says, — " I confine my observa- 
tions exclusively to man as he exists in the present 
world, and I beg that, on perusing the subsequent 
pages, this explanation may be constantly kept in view." 
I humbly apprehend that Mr Combe has here forgotten 
his own limitation, and extended his inquiry to subjects 
not relating to man as he exists in the present world, 
but relating to man as he existed in a different state, as 
to which natural reason furnishes no information. 

Theologians are not called upon to consider whether 
man, as originally constituted, possessed the organs of 
the propensities alluded to or not. Their duty, as 



240 UNPHILOSOPHICAL NATURE 

theologians, is to give a correct interpretation of Scrip- 
ture, and not to presume to be wise above what is 
written. Scripture furnishes no information whatever 
respecting the organs of the brain, either as they existed 
at the creation, or as they exist now. As an object of 
natural science we may properly inquire into their 
present state, but all information fails as to their condi- 
tion in a previous order of things. The bare proposing 
of such a question indicates a mind not thoroughly im- 
bued with that true philosophical spirit, so beautifully 
alluded to by Dr Thomas Brown, in his introductory 
lecture, — " a spirit which is quick to pursue whatever is 
within the reach of human intellect, but which is not less 
quick to discern the bounds that limit every human 
inquiry, and which, therefore, in seeking much, seeks 
only that which man may learn." 

Again, supposing man to have possessed such faculties 
at his creation, it is just as little incumbent upon 
theologians to shew what were the objects of them in a 
paradisaical state, a world where there was no sorrow, 
sin, death, or danger. We may conjecture what might 
have been their use in such a world, but we never can 
possibly know. Mr Combe has pointed out certain 
uses which they serve in the world as it now exists, and 
that was enough for his avowed purpose, and all that as 
a philosopher he was entitled to do. Had he been 
inclined to treat the subject philosophically, he would 
have said, that he was not called upon to shew their uses 
in such a state ; but that doubtless, in whatever state man 
may have been placed before the commencement of the 
present system of things, from the known wisdom and 
goodness of the Creator, we may be sure that he would be 
furnished with proper objects for the employment and 
gratification of all his faculties. 

The next question is not excelled in absurdity, by any 



OF MR combe's objections. 241 

that ever was propounded by the schoolmen : If these 
" organs were bestowed after the Fall, whether man, 
with new organs added to his brain, and new propen- 
sities to his mind, continued the same being?" &c. — 
Upon this I would only remark, that Mr Combe, in 
proposing such a question, seems to have forgotten what 
he had written in a former part of his work ; for at page 
7th he says, " If a theologian were 'to maintain that 
these organs, or several of them, were bestowed on man 
in consequence of sin, or from any other cause, philoso- 
phers would remain silent to such proposition." He 
seems to be aware, that such a statement as this, coming 
from his opponents, would be utterly unphilosophical and 
preposterous : and yet, with marvellous inconsistency, he 
makes no scruple of gravely submitting to them this very 
proposition, as requiring their serious consideration, and 
as giving rise to a question which it is incumbent on them 
to solve / This is utterly undeserving of answer. " In- 
dignandum de isio, noil disputandum est"* 

The last question is, " Whether the existence of these 
organs, and of an external world adapted to them, 
does not prove that man, as he now exists, is not 
actually the same being as when he was created, and 
that his corruption consists in his tendency to abuse 
his faculties, and not in any inherent viciousness attri- 
butable to his nature itself?" Passing over the ineffable 
nonsense about new organs being added to the brain, and 
admitting man to be essentially the same being, (that is, 
of the same species,) as he was at his creation, it may 
be asked, What does it signify whether his corruption 
consists in a natural tendency to abuse his faculties, or in 
any inherent viciousness attributable to these faculties ? 
What is the difference between an inherent viciousness, 
and an inherent tendency to abuse ? There is, and there 

* Seneca. 
X 



242 HYPOTHETICAL ANSWERS TO 

can be none whatever. Viciousness, is a tendency to 
abuse ; and a tendenc}^ to abuse, is j ust viciousness. If Mr 
Combe admits a natural tendency in man to abuse his 
faculties, he admits quite enough to establish the doctrine 
of human depravity. 

But to return to the questions put respecting the 
existence of such propensities as Combativeness and Des- 
tructiveness, — although the questions themselves are 
utterly unphilosophical, and though they neither deserve 
nor» admit of an answer, so far as regards the facts, it is 
easy to answer the objection which they are intended to 
raise against the paradisaical state of man at his creation. 
To the question, whether man was originally endowed 
with propensities of Combativeness and Destructiveness, 
we answer, that we have no means of knowing ; but 
supposing he was, this affords no objection to the sup- 
position that he was originally placed in a world from 
which sorrow, sin, death, and danger were excluded ; 
for even in such a world, there might have been abun- 
dant exercise for such propensities. Mr Combe himself 
states, (p. 26,) that in his philosophical millennium, 
after man shall have been able to discover and obey all 
the natural laws, and when, consequently, on his own 
principles, pain and evil must be banished from the 
world, Combativeness and Destructiveness " would re- 
ceive full gratification in muscular exercises," or " in 
any employment requiring the exertion of muscular 
strength." 

I have already alluded to what Mr Combe has men- 
tioned in his " System," (though he has not chosen to 
repeat it in his " Constitution of Man,") that these 
two propensities are general powers, not limited to the 
outward acts of fighting and killing, but communicating 
to the mind, each in its own way, a certain species of 
energy, which may be turned to account even in carrying 



MR combe's objections. 243 

into effect the purposes of benevolence. This is the true 
view of the matter ; and what is there in the fact of the 
existence of such faculties as these, inconsistent with the 
supposition of a paradisaical state? The fact is, that 
such faculties are not useful merely, they are absolutely 
necessary to the perfection of such a being as man in 
any state whatever. Without them he must have been 
a poor, weak, nerveless, and inefficient creature, unfit 
for maintaining the prominent place in creation he was 
destined to hold, and utterly incapable of exercising that 
dominion which was given to him over the creatures. 

Combativeness is now perfectly understood to be a 
quality which gives the love of strenuous exertion of any 
kind, physical or mental. Destructiveness, or the feeling 
which goes under that name, communicates to the mind 
an energy superior to this, a vehemence and fiery 
impetuousity which bears down all before it, and which 
is necessary on various occasions to give effect to the 
brightest exhibitions of moral excellence, and the most 
splendid exertions of genius. Who that has heard 
the finest bursts of eloquence from some of our first 
rate orators, whether at the bar, in the senate, or 
in the pulpit, but must be satisfied of the immense 
effect which the powers we have mentioned have in 
exhibiting to advantage all the highest qualities of mind ? 
Who, for instance, that has heard our own orator, Dr 
Chalmers, in some of his most transcendent displays of 
genius, but must be satisfied that the truths which he 
inculcates with regard to the condition of man, or the 
magnificent views which he opens up of the greatness 
and goodness of the Deity, owe more than half their 
power and effect to the overwhelming vehemence with 
which they are poured forth, and brought home to the 
consciences and the understandings of his hearers ? 

In fact, the qualities we have mentioned have not only 



'24:4 HYPOTHETICAL ANSWERS TO 

both a fair and legitimate sphere of activity of their own y 
but seem to be necessary to the effective and vigorous 
manifestation of all the other powers, bodily or mental. 
Holding this to be the case, can it be supposed that man, 
with all his faculties of body and mind in a state of 
absolute perfection, would, when placed in a world where, 
no evil was allowed to enter, be deprived of powers so 
indispensable, and condemned to a state of bodily or 
mental inaction ? Would not one great source of his hap- 
piness consist in the vigorous exertion of all his powers, 
accompanied with a perfect satisfaction such as at present 
we are hardly able to imagine ? What we are now 
enabled to accomplish with toil and difficulty, he would 
then be able to perform with ease and pleasure. And 
what is there to prevent us from supposing, that in this 
perfect state of the faculties, the most powerful and 
energetic activity of these, and of all the other powers, 
bodilv and mental, might be so controlled and modified 
as to be exercised on all occasions, and under all cir- 
cumstances, consistently with the most perfect innocence, 
and that the highest exertions of power and genius might 
then be made harmless as the gambols of childhood? 
He must, at least, have a low idea of the perfection of 
human nature, of the goodness of God, aud of the 
infinite resources of divine wisdom, who cannot imagine 
to himself all this, and a thousand times more, as 
possible in a world which God himself saw to be good, 
and into which sorrow and sin, pain and death, were 
not permitted to enter. 

It is of no consequence whether what is here suggested 
in answer to Mr Combe's objection to the paradisaical 
state, be true or not, in point of fact. The matter lies 
beyond the reach of our (acuities, and nothing respecting 
it can be reduced to the test of evidence. But what we 
have now suggested i7iay be true, and that is quite suffi- 



MR combe's objections. 245 

cient as an answer to the objection. For aught we 
know, and for aught Mr Combe knows, the above may 
have been the state of man in Paradise. Other answers 
might be given which would equally remove the diffi- 
culty, but it is useless to multiply conjectures about a 
iact, the real state of which cannot possibly be known. 

In regard to Cautiousness — there is no doubt that it 
is a faculty well adapted to our condition in the present 
life, where so much danger and -evil abound; but there 
is just as little doubt that it might have been equally 
well adapted, though in a different wa}', to another 
state of things. The perfect satisfaction of this faculty 
consists in the feeling of safety ; and where could this 
feeling be enjoyed in so much perfection, as in a state 
from which all pain, and danger, and evil were ex- 
cluded ? While man continued in a state of dependence 
upon God, and while it was his privilege and his delight 
to do His will in all things, an appropriate exercise 
would be afforded to this sentiment, by leading him to 
avoid every thing that could offend his gracious Bene- 
factor. This is a feeling which no degree of perfection 
in his powers, no circumstances of happiness in his con- 
dition, could ever render unnecessary to a finite and 
created being, standing in the presence of his great 
Creator and Master. The difference between his con- 
dition then and his condition now may have been this, 
that, in his original and perfect state, all his faculties 
were sufficient to answer the purposes for which they 
were conferred; whereas now, in our imperfect and 
fallen state, we feel that they are not always sufficient 
for these purposes. Then, the possession of Cautiousness 
would enable man, with ease, to avoid every cause of 
annoyance ; while now, we feel that, in spite of all the 
caution we .are able to bestow, troubles come upon us, 
as the sparks fly upwards, many of which we are not 
x2 



•246 MR combe's views of death. 

able* to avoid. Now, in our best estate, we feel Cautious- 
ness disagreeably affected by perpetual alarms ; then, it 
would receive entire gratification in the constant feeling 
of perfect security — the faculties of man, by its aid, being 
sufficient to provide for that security, under all possible 
circumstances. 

But had there been no other object for Cautiousness 
in Paradise, an abundant explanation of the necessity of 
such a faculty would be afforded by the command not 
to eat of the fruit of the tree of knowledge, under the 
pain of death. Surely this command was specially 
addressed to Cautiousness. Unfortunately, in this par- 
ticular case, the faculty was not sufficient to avert the 
danger. Into that point we need not enter. Enough 
has been said to answer the objection. 



CHAPTER IX. 



ON DEATH. 



1. Objection to the Doctrine that Death was brought upon Man 
as the Punishment of sin, considered. 

Mr Combe's objections to the Paradisaical state are 
contained in a few short sentences ; but on the subject 
of death he has favoured us with a long dissertation. 
His object is to shew, that death is inseparable from the 
condition of man, as an organized being — that it is a 
benevolent and merciful institution, as it provides him 
with many enjoyments which he could not have other- 
wise possessed — and that, upon the whole, on natural 
grounds, having reference to this world alone, it is not 
to be regarded as an evil. 



247 

His views on the first of these points are thus stated : — 
" I am aware that, theologically, death is regarded as 
the punishment of sin, and that the attempt to reconcile 
our minds to it is objected to, as at once futile and 
dangerous. But I beg leave to observe, that philosophers 
have established, by irrefragable evidence, that before 
man was created, death prevailed among the lower 
animals, not only by natural decay and the operation 
of physical forces, but by the express institution of 
carnivorous creatures destined to prey on living beings ; 
that man himself is carnivorous, and obviously framed 
by the Creator for a scene of death ; that his organic 
constitution, in its inherent qualities, implies death as 
its final termination ; and that if these facts be admitted 
to be undeniable on the one hand, and we are pro- 
hibited on the other from attempting to discover, from 
the records of creation itself, the wise adaptation of the 
human feelings and intellect to such a state of things, 
neither the cause of revelation nor that of reason can be 
thereby benefited. The foregoing facts cannot be dis- 
puted or concealed ; and the only effect of excluding 
the investigation on which I propose to enter, would be 
to close the path of reason, and to leave the constitution 
of the external world and of the human mind apparently 
in a state of contradiction to each other. Let us rather 
trust to the inherent consistency of all truths, and rely 
on all sound conclusions of reason being in accordance 
with every correct interpretation of Scripture."* 

" The true view of death, therefore, is, that it is an 
essential part of the system of organization ; that birth, 
growth, and arrival at maturity, as completely imply 
decay and death in old age, as morning and noon imply 
evening and night — as spring and summer imply har- 
vest — or as the source of a river implies its termination. 
* Constitution of Man, p. 53, col. 1. 



*248 MR COMBE TRANSGRESSES THE LIMITS 

Besides, organized beings are constituted by the Creator 
to be the food of other organized beings, so that some 
must die that others may live. Man, for instance, 
cannot live on stones, or earth, or water, which are not 
organized, but must feed on vegetable and animal sub- 
stances, so that death is as much and as essentially an 
inherent attribute of organization as life itself."* 

<; To prevent, however, all chances of being misappre- 
hended, I repeat, that I do not at all allude to the state 
of the soul or mind after death, but merely to the disso- 
lution of organized bodies."f 

Before proceeding to notice these statements, it is 
proper to observe, that Mr Combe takes a very imper- 
fect new of the theological doctrine alluded to, if he 
regards death as comprehending merely the dissolution 
of the body. This, according to theologians, is but a 
part, and the least important part, of death, considered 
as the punishment of sin. They consider death in 
a threefold view, — as spiritual, temporal, and eternal. 
Without going into any discussion on the point, I shall 
merely refer to the definition given of Death in Cruden's 
Concordance. " Death signifies, (1.) The separation 
of the soul from the body. Gen. xxv. 11. 77:: 
temporal death. (*2.) A separation of soul and body 
from God's favour in this Vfe, which is the state of all 
unregenerate and unrenewed persons, who are without the 
light of knowledge and the quickening power of grace. 
Luke, i. 79. This is spiritual death. (3.) The per- 
petual separation of the whole man from God's heavenly 
presence and glory , to be tormented for ever with the 
Devil and his angels. Rev. ii. 11. This is the second 
death, or eternal death. To all these hinds of death, 
Adam made himself and his posterity liable, by trans- 

' Constitution of Man, p. 56, col. 2. f Ibid. 



OF PHILOSOPHICAL INQUIRY. 249 

gressing the commandment of God in eating the forbidden 
fruit. Gen. ii. 17." 

It would be entirely out of place here to insist farther 
upon a doctrine so peculiarly and strictly theological, 
and I only mention it at all to prevent its being supposed, 
that, in regarding deatli as the punishment of sin, 
theologians only refer to temporal death. Mr Combe 
confines his attention exclusively to the latter, which he 
merely considers as the dissolution of the body, and 
which theologians regard as the separation of the soul 
from the body ; and as that is certainly held by them to 
be part of the punishment of sin, I shall proceed to con- 
sider the question as regarding it alone. 

In the passages above quoted, Mr Combe commits the 
same offence against the proper rules of philosophical 
discussion, as I had occasion to complain of in the last 
chapter. He carefully and properly guards himself 
against being understood to allude to the state of the 
soul or mind after death, which he repeatedly stales to 
belong to the province of revelation. He ought to have 
gone farther, and declared, that he refers to the subject 
merely in relation to man as he exists in the present 
world, and that he does not carry his conclusions to a state 
which existed before the present system of things, as to 
which we have no facts to guide us from natural science, 
and no information except what is furnished by Scrip- 
ture. The " records of creation''' furnish no materials 
from which we can draw any inference as to the state of 
man in the period which intervened between his first 
introduction into the world, and his fall from innocence. 
This is equally within the province of revelation, and 
equally beyond the sphere of philosophical inquiry, as 
the state of the soul after death. 

The whole transactions stated in the first three chap- 
ters of Genesis are evidently so different from any of 



250 REASON AFFORDS NO LIGHT 

which we have experience at present, as to take them 
out of the category of those general laws which now 
govern the current of nature's operations. They all 
partake of the character of miracles so far, that they all 
imply a special interference of divine power. The 
creation of the world itself, a fact which is admitted by 
all, is equalty miraculous, whether we consider it to 
have been accomplished at once, or by successive steps 
through a period of countless ages, or imagine the present 
world to have been erected on the ruins of one which 
preceded it. The creation of man was a new miracle, 
clearly distinguished from the formation of the lower 
animals, and his nature in some respects essentially diffe- 
rent from theirs. Every thing which followed is mira- 
culous : the planting of a garden in Eden for the habita- 
tion of man ; the tree of life which grew in the midst of 
the garden, and the tree of knowledge beside it ; the 
intercourse which took place between God and man, 
which, though then it might appear natural, is to us 
miraculous ; the creation of woman ; the command not 
to eat of the forbidden fruit ; the temptation ; the fall ; 
the curse, or sentence pronounced upon the tempter, the 
woman, the earth, and the man ; and finally, the expul- 
sion from Paradise, are all miraculous, or rather, they 
relate to a state of things when every thing, as compared 
with the present, was miraculous. Of these events, we 
have no information whatever but what we derive from 
Scripture. 

It was not until after his 'expulsion from Paradise, 
that the state of man was fixed in the condition in which 
he now appears. It was not till then that the general 
laws which form the course of nature, were as to him 
finally arranged — nay, some of those laws were not entirely 
adjusted on their present footing till after the Deluge. It 
must, therefore, be unphilosophical and irrational to 



AS TO THE PRIMITIVE STATE OF MAN. 251 

attempt to draw any conclusion from his condition now, 
in evidence of what it was then. 

That the lower animals have always been liable to 
death, both in the present world and in^that which 
existed before the creation of man, may be at once 
admitted ; and that man is now equally so, is a fact 
about which there can be no dispute. But it is going 
quite beyond the province of philosophy to contend, 
that, because this is the case with man as he now exists, 
therefore, it must always have been so, and that it must 
have been so in a state totally different from the present 
— a state which revelation tells us to have been altogether 
surrounded by circumstances purely miraculous. 

If there is any difference in this respect between the 
state of the soul after death, and the state of human 
nature previous to the Fall, it is this, — that natural reason 
is less able to afford us any light respecting the latter, 
than it is respecting the former. Independent of 
Scripture, reason affords us some grounds for drawing 
conclusions in favour of a future state ; and man, in all 
ages, has possessed notions, more or less distinct, of a 
state of existence of the soul, or thinking principle within 
us, after its separation from our present body. Socrates 
and Plato, and other heathen philosophers, have come 
very near to the same views upon this subject, which 
are more clearly unfolded by revelation ; but with regard 
to the state before the Fall, as well as the Fall itself, and 
every thing connected with it, reason affords us no infor- 
mation whatever. There are, to be sure, certain obscure 
intimations, contained in some ancient poems, of an age 
when men are said to have been universally virtuous and 
happy : but these are more likely to have been derived 
from tradition, than to have been deduced from any 
grounds of reason, and are, at any rate, too much mixed 
up with mythological fictions to be deserving of attention 



252 SPECIAL OBJECTIONS 

here. We have, therefore, nothing with regard to this 
state, but the positive declarations of Scripture ; and we 
must take these as they are given us. 

According to the Scripture accounts, there are three 
circumstances which take man, in his primitive condi- 
tion, quite out of the rules which are applicable to him 
in his present state. 1st, He was created in the image 
of God, who, we are informed, " breathed into his 
nostrils the breath of life, and he became a living soul." 
This is not stated to have been done at the creation of 
any of the animal tribes. 2d, He enjoyed personal 
intercourse with God, which it is hardly possible to 
suppose would have been allowed to a mere mortal 
creature. 3d, He had access to a species of food alto- 
gether unknown to us, — the fruit of the tree of life. 
Of what is included in any one of these circumstances, 
we are utterly ignorant, and all speculation concerning 
them is irrational and vain. But unless we are pre- 
pared to reject revelation, and to treat the whole as a 
forgery and a fable, they must be held as removing man 
so far above his present condition, as to render every 
argument drawn from his present state, just as inappli- 
cable with regard to his condition at that period, as it 
can be with regard to his future condition after the 
resurrection. 

It is expressly stated in Genesis, that in consequence 
of man's transgression, a sentence was pronounced upon 
him, in which death was included as one of its articles, 
which would have been absurd had he been already liable 
to death as part of his original constitution. It is stated 
by St Paul, that " by one man sin entered into the world, 
and death by sin;" and this is not a solitary text, for 
many other passages occur, intimating clearly that death, 
with regard to man, is the consequence of sin, and part 
of its punishment. 



AS TO THE PRIMITIVE STATE OF MAN. 253 

This is the Scripture doctrine ; and it stands upon 
ground which cannot be impugned by any philosophical 
argument, for it lies beyond the proper sphere of philoso- 
phical investigation, as much as any thing else that lies 
beyond the limits of the world as now constituted. All 
Mr Combe's arguments respecting this subject must be 
confined to the present state of things. We shall con- 
sider a few of them. 

" Death, then," he says, " appears to be a result of 
the constitution of all organized beings; for the very 
definition of the genus is, that the individuals grow, 
attain maturity, and die." This proves nothing ; it just 
takes for granted the point to be proved. The following 
looks something like an argument, though it is a bad one: 
" The human imagination cannot conceive how the 
former part of this series of movements could exist with- 
out the latter, as long as space is necessary to corporeal 
existence. If all the vegetable and animal productions 
of nature, from creation downwards, had grown, attained 
maturity, and there remained, the world would not have 
been capable of containing the thousandth part of them, 
so that, on this earth, decaying and dying appear indis- 
pensably necessary to admit of reproduction and growth." 
This objection is pre-eminently absurd, considering 
that we are speaking of a state of things of which we 
know positively nothing, and respecting the proceedings 
and arrangements of a Being who has only to will an 
effect, in order to produce it. What might have been 
the state of man had he continued without sin — had 
the first pair and all their posterity continued to enjoy 
personal intercourse with their heavenly Father, and to 
do his will in all things, as the angels do in heaven, — 
we cannot possibly know; but this we are sure of, that 
their situation would have been then, as it is now, wisely 
adapted to their constitution, whatever that might have 

Y 



254 SPECIAL OBJECTIONS 

been. If it had pleased the Almighty Creator that man 
should have lived for ever not subject to disease or decay, 
he had the power to accomplish this without committing 
the enormous blunder of leaving the race without suffi- 
cient room to contain them. It is not merely unphilo- 
sophical, it is ridiculous, and even blasphemous, to 
suppose that the resources of Divine power and wisdom 
are not equal to the solution of a problem like this. 
These resources are infinitely beyond those of the human 
understanding, and nothing but the grossest folly can 
lead any one to imagine that there is any difficulty here. 
There are many methods obvious even to us, by which 
the difficulty could be avoided ; and it is of no conse- 
quence whatever whether this should be done, by arrest- 
ing the farther increase of the race, after the world had 
become sufficiently stocked with inhabitants, or by trans- 
ferring a part of them to other mansions, without tasting 
of death, as we are informed was actually done with 
some holy men of old, as Enoch, " who walked with 
God, and was not, for God took him;" or, as Elijah, 
the greatest of the prophets, who was carried to heaven 
in a chariot of fire. 

The same observations apply to the following remarks. 
They are all exclusively applicable to the present system 
of things, — that system which commenced at the Fall, 
and in which the world has continued ever since the 
expulsion of man from Paradise ; but they are utterly 
irrelevant and inapplicable either to the original state 
of man before the Fall, or his future state beyond the 
grave. 

"1st. It is obvious that amativeness and philopro- 
genitiveness are provided with direct objects of gratifica- 
tion, as one concomitant of the institution of death. If 
the same individuals had lived here forever, there would 
have been no field for the enjoyment that flows from the 



HYPOTHETICALLY ANSWERED. 255 

domestic union and the rearing of offspring. The very 
existence of these propensities shews, that the production 
and rearing of young, form part of the design of creation ; 
and the successive production of young appears necessarily 
to imply the removal of the old. 

" 2d. Had things been otherwise arranged, all the 
other faculties would have been limited in their gratifi- 
cations. Conceive for a moment, how much exercise is 
afforded to our intellectual and moral powers in acquiring 
knowledge, communicating it to the young, and pro- 
viding for their enjoyments — also, what a delightful 
exercise of the higher sentiments is implied in the inter- 
course between the aged and the young; all which 
pleasures would have been unknown, had there been 
no young in existence, which there could not have been 
without a succession of generations. 

" 3d. Constituted as man is, the succession of indi- 
viduals withdraws beings whose physical and mental 
constitutions have run their course and become impaired 
in sensibility, and substitutes in their place fresh and 
vigorous minds and bodies, far better adapted for the 
enjoyment of creation. 

" 4th. If I am right in the position that the organic 
laws transmit to offspring, in an increasing ratio, the 
qualities most active in their parents, the law of succes- 
sion provides for a far higher degree of improvement 
than could have been reached, supposing the permanency 
of a single generation possessing the present human 
constitution." 

These remarks (with the exception of the last, which 
involves a theory of extreme difficulty) are excellent, as 
applicable to our present condition ; and to that extent 
it may be at once admitted, that the present arrange- 
ment is good — but it is quite unphilosophical to argue 
that no other arrangement could have been made suited 



256 MR combe's views only apply 

to man in another state. As well might it be argued, 
that the happiness of heaven hereafter cannot be perfect, 
because there, we are informed, there is neither to be 
marrying nor giving in marriage, and, consequently, 
there cannot be the same field as there is here for 
domestic enjoyment, and no employment in the rearing 
of offspring, communicating knowledge to the young, 
&c. It is absurd to argue in this way. From the 
known wisdom and goodness of the Creator, we may be 
quite sure that, in the original state of man, while he 
continued perfect and sinless, he must have possessed, 
as he will possess in heaven, every thing necessary to 
gratify his faculties. Now, that we are made subject to 
death, and that some enjoyments have been consequently 
taken away from us, others have been mercifully pro- 
vided, which, in some respects, console us under these 
irremediable evils; but it does not follow from this, 
either that death was originally a necessary and indis- 
pensable condition of our existence, or that it is not an 
evil after all. 

There is one natural law of which Mr Combe has 
taken no notice, namely, the law of Compensation. It 
is one of the characteristics of God's dealing with his 
creatures, that when he deprives a race or an individual 
of any enjoyment or of any privilege, he bestows a 
double portion of some other gift to compensate for the 
want. The lower animals are deprived of the enjoy- 
ments of intellectual and moral intercourse ; but they are 
not sensible of the deficiency, and those they possess, 
limited as they are, are rendered sufficient for their 
happiness. Sheep and cattle are exceedingly stupid, and 
seem to possess very few ideas ; but to make up for this, 
they are so constituted as to be almost continually either 
feeding or ruminating, so that with them, all the time 
they are awake, there is almost no end to the pleasure 



TO OUR PRESENT CONDITION. 257 

of feeding. Carnivorous animals eat more rapidly, and 
despatch their meals more quickly, but have abundant 
employment for their faculties in seeking their prey. 
The law of compensation also takes place in man. Men 
who are deprived of sight, are gifted with extraordinary 
sensibility of hearing and touch ; and so in every thing 
else. In the paradisaical state, man's greatest privilege 
and highest enjoyment must have consisted in an inter- 
course with God — an intercourse sufficient to occupy 
and to gratify all his faculties to the utmost. When 
that intercourse was withdrawn, other objects were 
mercifully accorded to him ; and while banished from 
the divine presence, lying as we now do under the 
universal sentence of death, provision is wisely made for 
a succession of beings, who are born, grow up, continue 
a few years, and die, each in its little hour receiving 
and contributing something towards mutual enjoyment. 
All this is abundantly wise and merciful, and no other 
arrangement would have agreed so well with the con- 
dition of man as a fallen creature ; but it is utterly 
unphilosophical to conclude that it is necessary, or that 
Omnipotence itself could not have devised another suited 
to man in a different and more perfect state of being. 

Mr Combe conceives, that, if man would only obey 
all the natural laws, death, during the earlier periods of 
his existence, would be abolished, and the only instance 
of it remaining would be death from old age. 

He observes, that, " In every country, individuals are 
to be found, who have escaped from sickness during the 
whole course of a protracted life. Now," he adds, " as 
a natural law never admits of an exception, this excellent 
health could not occur in any individuals, unless it were 
fairly within the capabilities of the race." 

Let us consider this argument of Mr Combe's, and 
see to what conclusions it may lead. 

y2 



258 DISEASES, &C. ATTRIBUTED 

There have been instances, in many countries, of men 
growing to the height of eight, nine, or even ten feet. 
Now, if a natural law never admits of an exception, this 
exalted stature would never occur in anv individual, 
unless it were fairly within the capabilities of the race : 
therefore, there is nothing to prevent the human species 
from becoming a race of giants. 

Instances have been known of twins being born 
attached to one another by a natural ligature, like the 
Siamese youths lately exhibited in this country. Now. 
as a natural law never admits of exceptions, this would 
not occur even in one solitary case, unless it were fairly 
within the capabilities of the race. Thus we may have 
a whole nation of Siamese twins. 

What idea Mr Combe may attach to a natural law, 
in cases like the above, I know not ; but certainly these 
and similar cases are generally looked upon as excep- 
tions to the ordinary course of nature's operations. He 
is the first, I believe, who has denied such exceptions to 
exist, and he has also the merit of being the first who 
has adopted the exception as the rule, and attempted to 
convert the. rule into the exception. 

No doubt it may be true, that in every country, among 
the many millons of inhabitants it contains, there may 
be insulated cases of favoured individuals who have 
escaped from serious sickness during a protracted life. 
But is it not true, that such instances are extremely rare, 
about equally rare as the cases of giants and other pre- 
ternatural productions ? By far the greater number, 
indeed the great mass of mankind, find themselves at 
times liable to bodily pain and sickness. That is the 
general rule ; the other is the exception, or, it may be 
called, an extreme case. Some are less liable to disease 
than others, and of those who are so, there may be some 
so little affected by it, that we may say, they have never 



TO INFRINGEMENT OF NATURAL LAWS. 259 

suffered from it at all. There are extreme cases, but all 
cases cannot be extreme. 

But Mr Combe says, there is no occasion for this 
being the rule ; men suffer sickness because they disobey 
the natural laws, or because their fathers or their pro- 
genitors have disobeyed them before they were born. 
Well, let us take it in that way. Most men — nay, we 
may say, all men — disobey the natural laics. Their 
fathers have disobeyed them, universally, before they 
were born, and, therefore, the race is afflicted with pain, 
disease, and sickness, leading to early death. For the 
disobedience in time past, that is beyond remedy. But 
who shall say, that looking to the present condition of 
the race, and the known weakness and waywardness of 
our nature, they will be universally, or even generally, 
obeyed in time to come. 

From the consideration we have already given this 
subject, we think we are entitled to conclude, that human 
reason is utterly incompetent to devise means for produ- 
cing so great a reformation — that physical and moral evil 
are far too widely spread and too deeply rooted to admit of 
being removed by any means or motives which philosophy 
is capable of presenting to us — that the natural laics, 
even though universally known, will never be perfectly 
obeyed in the sense intended by Mr Combe, and that, 
consequently, pain, disease, and death, at the earlier, as 
well as the later periods of our existence here, must 
remain part of the lot of humanity, as long as the race 
remains in the present world. 

But what is, perhaps, the most objectionable part of 
Mr Combe's speculation, is the attempt to take away all 
ihe moral effect of the contemplation of death, and to 
place man, in regard to this institution, on a level with 
the beasts that perish, by endeavouring to reconcile us 



260 MR combe's views of death. 

to that institution on grounds equally applicable to them 
as to us, having reference solely to the present life, and 
turning away our thoughts altogether from the only 
point relating to it that is really of importance, — the 
prospect of a life to come. 

" Let us inquire," says he, " how the moral senti- 
ments are affected by death in old age as a natural 
institution. 

" Benevolence, glowing with a disinterested desire for 
the diffusion and increase of enjoyment, utters no com- 
plaint against death in old age, as a transference of 
existence from a being impaired in its capacity for 
usefulness and pleasure, to one fresh and vigorous in all 
its powers, and fitted to carry forward to a higher point 
of improvement every beneficial measure previously 
begun. Conscientiousness, if thoroughly enlightened, 
perceives no infringement of justice in the calling on a 
guest, satiated with enjoyment, to retire from the banquet, 
so as to permit a stranger with a keener and more 
youthful appetite to partake. And Veneration, when 
instructed by intellect that this is the intention of the 
Creator, and made acquainted with its objects, bows in 
humble acquiescence to the law. Now, if these powers 
have acquired in any individual that complete supremacy 
which they are clearly entitled to hold, he will be placed 
by them as much above the terror of death, as a natural 
institution, as the lower animals are by being ignorant 
of its existence." 

If any argument were wanting to prove the utter 
insufficiency and hollowness of Mr Combe's principle of 
the supremacy of these feelings, which he chooses to 
call exclusively the moral sentiments, this passage would 
be sufficient of itself to prove that insufficiency. Who 
could ever be fortified against the terrors of death by 
considerations like these ? He tells us what Benevolence 



MR COMBE'S VIEWS OF DEATH. 261 

says, and what Conscientiousness says, and what Venera- 
tion says, just as if these were separate individuals, each 
having a vote in the congress of the faculties. And if 
man had no other faculties than these, the decision would 
be unanimous, and, according to Mr Combe's view, 
quite satisfactory. It may be quite true that Benevolence, 
which merely looks to the welfare of others, — Conscien- 
tiousness, which respects their rights, — and Veneration, 
which looks up to the Creator, — may feel no disturbance 
at the prospect of death. But that is not the question. 
These are not the faculties which are affected by the 
prospect of death, The faculties which really are so 
affected are, first, the Love of life, which Mr Combe 
admits to be an original principle or feeling for which 
there is an organ in the brain ; second, the Love of self, 
which by no theory of morals, not even the Christian, is 
ever required to be less strong than the love of our 
neighbour, — for we are only commanded to love our 
neighbour as ourselves ; Hope, which the prospect of 
death is calculated entirely to crush and destroy, and 
which nothing can reconcile to it but the promise 
of a life to come ; and lastly. Cautiousness^ which 
ever regards death, as soon as we understand what 
it means, with the greatest solicitude and alarm. It, 
therefore, signifies nothing to tell us what Benevolence 
says, and what Conscientiousness says, and what Venera- 
tion says ; but what does the man say who possesses the 
one set of faculties as well as the other ? The latter 
set of faculties, so long as they possess any sensibility, 
are strongly impressed with horror at the idea of death ; 
and it signifies nothing to tell us that another set of 
faculties, which, in general, act with much inferior force, 
do not feel this horror. The man feels it, and that is 
enough. It may safely be pronounced, that, apart from 
the prospect of a future state, every human being, whose 



262 FEELINGS OF MAN ON PROSPECT OF DEATH. 

mind is in a sane, active, and well ordered condition, feels 
a natural horror at the idea of death, and regards it as 
the greatest of earthly calamities. Philosophers may 
speculate on the subject in their closets, and persuade 
themselves that they are reconciled to the idea of death ; 
but their feelings change when the King of Terrors 
actually makes his approach, and delivers his awful 
summons. Mr Combe mentions this to have been the 
case with Lord Byron in the near prospect of death, 
though, in general, he felt no great desire to live ; and, 
it may be affirmed, the feeling is universal. In all cir- 
cumstances, except under the pressure of complicated 
calamities or incurable disease, or in cases of over- 
wrought religious feeling, when the faculties are in a 
disordered and morbidly excited state, or when exist- 
ence itself seems to have become a burden, there is no 
real instance of a desire for, or even an indifference 
about, death. As Dr Johnson observes, we know it will 
do us no good to whine, and we submit ; but we submit 
because our fate is unavoidable, and for no other reason. 
All attempts to argue away the fear of death on 
natural grounds are universally felt to be utterly hollow 
and worthless, and can have no other effect than to turn 
away our eyes from the only true preservative from that 
fear, and, as far as in us lies, to detract from the value 
of " the blessed hope of everlasting life," which is held 
out to us by the Gospel. 



2. — On the omission of a Future State. 

Throughout the whole of his speculation on death, 
Mr Combe has industriously, andof set purpose, excluded 
all consideration of a Future State. There might have 
been less harm in this, had his work been a purely 



OMISSION OF A FUTURE STATE. 263 

philosophical one, intended merely as an ingenious 
exercise of the understanding, and addressed exclusively 
to philosophers. On the contrary, however, he states 
in his preface, that his purpose is practical ; that his 
great object is " to exhibit several of the most important 
natural laics, and their relations and consequences, with 
a view to the improvement of education, and the regula- 
tion of individual and national conduct." Accordingly, the 
work has been widely disseminated among the labouring 
classes, and others of the less educated portion of society. 
The object of the Henderson Bequest, is expressly to 
promote its circulation among these classes. It is put 
into the hands of the young and the half-instructed, as 
a manual of information on all points relative to their 
condition in this world ; and not merely for the regulation 
of private conduct, but for guiding their opinions on 
every point of national and political, as well as individual 
interest. In these circumstances, it is impossible to admit 
the excuse which Mr Combe offers for the omission of 
this most important and vital element in the constitution 
and condition of man. He says, at p. 7, that the 
objection stated to that omission, is founded on a mis- 
apprehension of the object of the book. " It is my 
purpose to shew, that the rewards and punishments of 
human actions are infinitely more complete, certain, and 
efficacious in this life than is generally believed ; but by 
no means to interfere with the sanctions to virtue afforded 
by the prospect of future retribution." To this, the 
answer is obvious, that such a mode of considering the 
subject may be very fit for a philosophical thesis, but 
is radically defective and unsound when applied to a 
practical treatise of morals, intended expressly for the 
instruction of the people. 

In order to consider, to any proper or useful effect, 
the subject of death, it must be, first of all, necessary to 



264 OMISSION OF A FUTURE STATE 

ascertain what death truly is. Now, this depends entirely 
on the question whether there is . a future state or not. 
If there is no future state, then death is the extinction 
of life, and the end of our existence. If, on the contrary, 
there is a state of existence beyond the grave, then death 
is merely the transition from one mode of existence to 
another; it is the termination of one life, and the com- 
mencement of another. Surely a matter so inconceivably 
important as this, ought not to be left in uncertainty in a 
practical and popular work, a manual of instruction for 
the regulation of conduct, which is to be industriously 
disseminated among the lower and less educated classes 
of society. 

Even though it be conceded to Mr Combe, that he 
was not called upon, in such a work as this, to go beyond 
the sphere of natural reason, he is without excuse, in as 
far as there are many arguments for a future state 
deducible by reason, which came fairly and naturally 
under his notice, and which he was bound, in discussing 
such a subject as this for the edification of the people 
generally, to place before them in their true light. And 
he is the more especially inexcusable in this, as the 
system of human nature which he adopts as the basis of 
his entire work, has furnished grounds in support of this 
conclusion, clearly confirming those which were relied 
upon by the philosphers of other days. Mr Combe is 
quite aware of these arguments, and has expressly 
alluded to them in his System of Phrenology. 

In speaking of the organ and faculty of Hope, in that 
System, # he has the following passage : " In religion, 
this faculty favours the exercise of faith ; and by pro- 
ducing the natural tendency to look forward to futurity 
w T ith expectation, disposes to belief in a life to come. 

* Combe's System of Phrenology, second edition, p. 207. Third 
edition, p. 307. 



INEXCUSABLE. 265 

" The metaphysicians admit this faculty, so that 
Phrenology only reveals its organ, and the effects of its 
endowment in different degrees. I have already stated 
an argument in favour of the being of a God, founded 
on the existence of a faculty of Veneration, conferring 
the tendency to worship, of which God is the proper 
and ultimate object. May not the probability of a 
future state be supported by a similar deduction from 
the possession of a faculty of Hope ? It appears to me, 
that this is the faculty from which originates the notion 
of futurity, and which carries the mind forward in endless 
progression into periods of never-ending time. May it 
not be inferred, that this instinctive tendency to leave 
the present scene, and all its enjoyments, to spring for- 
ward into the regions of a far distant futurity, and to 
expatiate, even in imagination, in the fields of an 
eternity to come, denotes that man is formed for a more 
glorious destiny than to perish for ever in the grave ? 
Addison beautifully enforces this argument in the Spec- 
tator, and in the soliloquy of Cato ; and Phrenology 
gives weight to his reasoning, by shewing that this 
ardent hope, this ' longing after immortality,' is not a 
factitious sentiment, or a mere exuberance of an idle 
and wandering imagination, but that it is the result of a 
primitive faculty of the mind, which owes at once its exis- 
tence and its functions to the Creator." There is more to 
the same purpose, but this is quite sufficient, and shews 
that Mr Combe is quite aware of the argument; and 
how, after having obtained so clear a view of a doctrine, 
in his • opinion so beautiful and consolatory, deduced 
from a principle recognized by Phrenology, he should 
have omitted all notice of it in a work expressly founded 
on the basis of that doctrine, appears utterly unaccoun- 
table. Admitting that it did not strictly fall within the 
original plan of his work, it would, at any rate, have 

z 



. 266 PHRENOLOGICAL ARGUMENT 

formed a graceful and appropriate pendant to that work. 
It could have detracted nothing from the force of his 
previous reasonings, and might have obviated some of 
the objections which occur to his treatise in its present 
shape. 

But though the passage I have quoted from his 
System shews that Mr Combe had there so far admitted 
the phrenological argument for a future state, he has 
not stated it quite correctly, nor followed it to its full 
extent, or to all its applications. He considers that the 
faculty of Hope " originates the notion of futurity" 
and " carries the mind forward in endless progression 
to periods of never-ending time." This appears to be a 
mistake. As phrenologists recognize a special faculty and 
organ for giving us a feeling of duration or time, it seems 
a necessary consequence that this feeling must extend to 
the future as well as the past, and therefore that the 
notion of futurity must originate with that faculty ; and 
the moment we admit this notion at all, we are neces- 
sarily carried forward in endless progression to eternity 
itself, as there is nothing which by possibility can set 
any limit to our notions of duration. It would appear 
that Hope does not originate, but merely modifies our 
feelings and anticipations of that futurity of which we 
previously had a distinct notion. Farther, it must be 
recollected that Hope is not the only faculty which looks 
forward to the future. Cautiousness, which, in its more 
active states, gives rise to the feeling of Fear, is no less 
interested in the subject of futurity ; and in looking to 
the future, which must always in the present life be to 
us an object of much uncertainty, Hope and Fear 
alternately hold the sway, and keep our minds nearly 
equally balanced between them. 

I would therefore say, that the probability of a future 
state is supported not by one, but by various feelings 
and faculties of the mind. In the first place, reason or 



FOR A FUTURE STATE. 267 

causality points out, that as in the present life the vicious 
and immoral are frequently prosperous, while the good 
and the virtuous suffer various calamities, it is therefore 
probable, from the known justice of the divine character, 
that after the present life we shall pass into another state 
of being, where those irregularities shall be redressed, 
and where vice will be punished, and virtue rewarded, 
with perfect justice and impartiality. But still, though 
this may be probable, death, the passage to this new and 
unknown state, appears as something dark and myste- 
rious, and Wonder has room to expatiate over a field 
where much uncertainty prevails. Hope, in the mean- 
time, as Mr Combe justly represents, " beckons us to 
spring forward into the regions of futurity, and denotes 
that man was formed for a more glorious destiny than 
to perish for ever in the grave." But here our aspiring 
hopes are checked by Cautiousness, which, awakened by 
the still small voice of conscience, whispers to the sinner 
that this glorious destiny may not be prepared for him ; 
and that instead of death opening to us a region of never 
ending delight, it may only usher us into a place of 
punishment for offences reiterated, aggravated, and 
numberless. 

Dark and dismal as death may appear, when consi- 
dered merely as the termination of the present life, it 
becomes, from these obscure and conflicting views, 
when considered in the farther light of its being the 
commencement of another state of existence, an object 
of tenfold doubt and anxiety. 

The view taken by Mr Combe of deducing the pro- 
bability of a future state from a feeling of Hope alone, is 
clearly not the true view in which it is to be considered. 
Naturally, Fear unquestionably predominates. Every 
one is conscious of offences against his Maker's laws, 
which he feels to be deserving of punishment, while no 
one can assume to himself such a stock of merit as to 



268 NATURAL ANTICIPATIONS. 

afford any just claim to, much less assurance of reward. 
To man, therefore, unenlightened by a revelation of the 
divine will, and of God's gracious purposes of pardon 
and acceptance to penitent sinners, the prospect of death, 
as viewed through the medium of his natural feelings, is 
almost universally an object of unmitigated terror. 

Revelation removes, in a great measure, these natural 
terrors, by representing God as willing to forgive iniquity, 
and to receive into his favour all who shall come unto 
him in the way he has expressly appointed. Into this 
subject I have no occasion to enter. It belongs to the 
department of theology, and its explanation must be left 
to divines. It is sufficient here to indicate, that from 
this source alone can any rational or satisfactory antidote 
be obtained against those terrors with which death is 
universally regarded by the natural feelings of mankind. 

This mode of considering the subject does not suit the 
views of Mr Combe. His object seems to be, to reject 
every view of our condition that does not flatter the 
pride, and gratify the selfish longings of our nature. 
He does not fairly consider all the principles of our 
constitution, even according to the system which he has 
adopted. He picks and chooses among the faculties, — 
he has his pets and his favourites among them, — and 
magnanimously rejects all of them that have the misfor- 
tune to displease him. He worships Hope, as presenting 
him only with pleasing and flattering anticipations. He 
altogether renounces Cautiousness, as a most uncivil and 
impertinent faculty, whose never-ending doubts and 
prognostications of evil are positively disagreeable. 
Wonder is entirely at a discount, and seems only fit to 
be banished to the nursery. Veneration meets with no 
great favour. Conscientiousness is spoken of with respect, 
but deprived of more than half its authority, being 
dethroned from the seat of justice, and positively inter- 
dicted from its ancient and universally admitted office of 



PARTIAL VIEWS OF MR COMBE. 269 

punishing the guilty : while Benevolence is deified and 
raised to a supremacy which no one has hitherto ventured 
to ascribe to it. This is no caricature ; it is the strict 
and literal truth, and any one who will take the trouble 
to go carefully through the whole of Mr Combe's 
lucubrations, will find it to be so. Now, what kind of 
dealing with a subject is this ? We have here several 
original principles and feelings implanted in the mind, 
all of the highest importance, the existence of which Mr 
Combe expressly acknowledges, — Veneration, Wonder, 
Hope, Fear, Justice, and Benevolence, — all bearing, more 
or less, upon the subject of a future life, and all, for any 
thing we are able to pronounce, of equal weight and 
authority. But Mr Combe seems to think he is entitled 
to dispense with that authority whenever he pleases. 

The united voice of all these faculties undoubtedly 
points to the high probability, if not absolute certainty, of 
a future state, but gives us no assurance of what that state 
will be. While Hope, encouraging us with views of the 
goodness of God, holds out the prospect of an eternity 
of felicity and glory, Cautiousness, or Fear, regarding 
only his greatness, his power, and his justice, represents 
the possibility, and something more than the possibility, 
of punishment for offences. Now, if the feelings which 
God has implanted in our minds point to these different 
conclusions as equally probable, or rather that the latter 
is the most probable of the two, where is the use of 
shutting our eyes to what, if true, must be our inevitable 
fate ? This seems, however, to be the natural result of 
Mr Combe's doctrines. 

We have seen that, when Mr Combe does think 
proper to look into this subject, he only takes advice of 
those counsellors who will flatter him, and give him the 
sort of advice he desires. But in the present work, he 
takes care to exclude all unpleasant suggestions, by 

z2 



270 NATURAL FEELINGS COINCIDE 

positively refusing to look into the subject at all, or to 
cast a single glance across the gulf which separates us 
from the other world. 

When we fairly and impartially listen to the suggestion^ 
of all the sentiments and powers which have reference to 
a future state, it is interesting to observe, how nearly they 
come to that view of the matter which is afforded to us by 
revelation. We there see, that the future life which it 
reveals to us is not exclusively addressed to our hopes, but 
that it is not less directly calculated to alarm our fears ; 
that, while we are called upon to trust in the goodness and 
mercy of our Divine Author, we are not less imperatively 
expected to think of his inflexible justice, and of those 
high attributes of righteousness and purity which cannot 
tolerate the sight of iniquity ; and we cannot briug our- 
selves to believe, that, with all our manifold offences, we 
can possibly find access to his favour, from any merit 
of our own. In short, the picture presented by the 
natural suggestions of the mental feelings, as far as 
it goes, appears to bear the same relation to that 
afforded by revelation, as the shadow does to the 
substance, or as the reflection in a mirror does to the 
objects which are placed before it.* 

* The following passage, which has often been quoted, from Dr 
Adam Smith's Theory of Moral Sentiments, coincides remarkably with 
the view given in the text of the natural feelings of man in regard to 
futurity. The passage was pointed out to me after I had written the 
preceding. 

i( If we consult our natural sentiments, we are apt to fear , lest, before 
the holiness of God, vice should appear to be more worthy of punishment, 
than the weakness and imperfection of human nature can ever seem to be of 
reward. Man, when about to appear before a being of infinite perfection, 
can feel but little confidence in his own merit, or in the imperfect pro- 
priety of his own conduct. In the presence of his fellow-creatures, he 
may often justly elevate himself, and may often have reason to think 
highly of his own character and conduct, compared to the still greater 
imperfection of theirs. But the case is quite different when about to 
appear before his infinite Creator. To such a being, he can scarce 



WITH REVELATION. 271 

The effect of excluding these views, as is here done 
by Mr Combe, can only be, to lull the mind into a 
deceitful calm, — to whisper to it " Peace, peace, when 
there is no peace," and consequently to prevent us, as 
far as possible, from having recourse to the only true 
refuge, — the hope that is set before us in the gospel. 

Mr Combe seems to think that his System, having 
reference only to the present life, by pointing out the 
consequences of evil actions in this world, will be equally 
effectual in presenting motives to a moral course of life, 
as the prospect of retribution in a life to come. He 
says, at page 7, " It appears to me, that every action 

imagine, that his littleness and weakness should ever seem to be the 
proper object either of esteem or reward. But he can easily conceive, 
how the numberless violations of duty of which he has been guilty, 
should render him the object of aversion and punishment : neither can he 
see any reason why the divine indignation should not be let loose without 
any restraint upon so vile an insect, as he is sensible that he himself must 
appear to be. If he would still hope for happiness, he is conscious that 
he cannot demand it from the justice, but that he must entreat it from 
the mercy of God. Repentance, sorrow, humiliation, contrition at the 
thought of his past conduct, are, upon this account, the sentiments which 
become him, and seem to be the only means which he has left, for 
appeasing that wrath which, he knows, he has justly provoked. He 
even distrusts the efficacy of all these, and naturally fears lest the wisdom 
of God should not, like the weakness of man, be prevailed upon to spare 
the crime, by the most importunate lamentations of the criminal. Some 
other intercession, some other sacrifice, some other atonement, he imagines, 
must be made for him, beyond what he himself is capable of making, 
before the purity of the divine justice can be reconciled to his manifest 
offences. 

" The doctrines of revelation coincide, in every respect, with these 
original anticipations of nature ; and as they teach us how little we can 
depend upon the imperfection of our own virtue, so they shew us, at 
the same time, that the most powerful intercession has been made, and the 
most dreadful atonement has been paid, for our manifest transgressions and 
iniquities. ,> — Theory of Moral Sentiments, p. 204, 206. 

This passage, expressing as it must be understood to do, the unbiassed 
opinion of Dr Smith on the important subject to which it refers, is con- 
tained in the first edition of his work, but was, for what reason is not 
known, omitted in subsequent editions. But litera scripta manet. 



272 MR combe's system offers 

which is morally wrong in reference to a future life, is 
equally wrong and inexpedient with relation to this 
world, and that it is essential to virtue to prove this to 
be the case." To me, on the other hand, it appears, 
that in many situations there are various actions which 
are morally wrong of themselves, and against which the 
prospect of a future retribution, if firmly believed, would 
offer an effectual check, which are not adequately 
punished by any consequences which follow from them 
in this world, and which, in certain situations, cannot 
even be said, with a view to this life alone, to be 
inexpedient. One of these offences, to which I have 
already alluded, is Suicide. If this is not looked upon 
as a crime, which is to be punished in a future state, 
most assuredly there is no punishment provided for it, 
or any consideration that can operate as a check against 
the commission of it, in this world. Mr Combe, upon 
his principles, has no argument which he could oppose 
to an intending suicide. Supposing a man reduced to 
the greatest misery and want, with no hope of extrica- 
tion, and, on the contrary, having nothing before him 
but the prospect of a lingering life of wretchedness and 
infamy, what, upon Mr Combe's system, could be sug- 
gested to turn him from his purpose ? It is needless to 
attempt to deter him by representing the extinction of 
life. He is tired of life, he is utterly wretched, and he 
considers that death would only be a relief from suffering. 
Death, considered as the extinction of being, or annihila- 
tion, is the object of his deliberate choice. What can 
be said on Mr Combe's principles in answer to this? 
Punishment in this world is out of the question, for by 
the very crime itself the criminal withdraws himself from 
all possibility of punishment here; and by the rule which 
Mr Combe has prescribed to himself of refusing to look 
beyond this life, he is prevented from supposing a punish- 



NO ARGUMENT AGAINST SUICIDE. 273 

ment hereafter; so that, upon the whole, it does not 
appear that any other conclusion can be come to but 
this, that under his system suicide is not to be regarded 
as a crime ; and consequently, that whenever any one 
tires of life, and chooses to desert his post, he is fully 
entitled to do so. For this, which in other systems is 
considered the greatest, because the most irremediable 
of crimes, the " Natural Laws" afford no remedy. 



CHAPTER X. 

ON THE PAINS OF PARTURITION. 

The pains of child-birth are proverbially considered 
about the greatest to which the human frame is subjected, 
and certainly no other species of suffering is so universal. 
No doubt the suffering is in some cases more severe 
than in others ; but in all ages, and in all countries, it 
has prevailed more or less, so as to be universally consi- 
dered as unquestionably an institution of the Creator. 
It may be asked, Could this have been an original insti- 
tution, and could such severe suffering have been made 
the lot of the female while the race continued in its 
original and perfect state ? 

In the book of Genesis, in the account which is given 
of the sentence pronounced on the first pair in conse- 
quence of their transgression, a very remarkable passage 
occurs, which appears to account in a certain way for 
the peculiarity alluded to. Before the sentence was 
pronounced on man, including the race in general, this 
peculiar burden was laid upon the woman : "I will 
greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception : in 
sorrow thou shalt bring forth children." The propriety 
of this being made the punishment of the woman is 
manifest, because this is the only punishment to which 



274 SCRIPTURAL VIEWS OF 

she could be exclusively subjected. All other bodily 
pains are common to both sexes ; but those attendant 
on conception and parturition are necessarily confined 
to the female. 

It was to the woman the highest privilege and honour 
that she should give birth to beings like herself. The 
sentence now pronounced seems to have been intended 
to prevent her frOm glorying in this distinction — to 
keep her humble, even at the moment when she was 
fulfilling the most important function of her existence — 
and even at this ecstatic moment, to remind her of her 
fall from purity and happiness. Two other circum- 
stances deserve notice as to this peculiar curse : first, the 
universality of its infliction. It is not dependent in any 
degree on outward circumstances. No rank, no wealth, 
no power, can procure any exemption. It attaches to the 
queen upon the throne equally as to the servant that 
grinds at the mill. Though proverbially the severest 
of pains, such is the strength of that principle which 
inspires the female with the desire of having children, 
that it never deters the most delicate woman from placing 
herself in the way of having them. This is a provision 
evidently necessary for the continuance of the race ; but 
there is another point in which benevolence towards the 
sufferer is equally conspicuous, — that, severe as the 
suffering is, so great is the delight of having offspring, 
that after the pangs of delivery are over, the mother 
feels all her pain overpaid with the most lively feelings 
of delight. " A woman when she is in travail, hath 
sorrow because her hour is come ; but as soon as she is 
delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the 
anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world." 
Nothing, surely, could be more beautifully appropriate, 
and no infliction so severe could be so eminently tem- 
pered with mercy. 



THE PAINS OF PARTURITION. 275 

The above are views which are very generally received 
with regard to this subject, and appear to be supported 
on reasonable grounds ; but they are totally disregarded 
by Mr Combe. He finds, that the suffering referred to 
is a fact directly in the teeth of his theory about the 
natwal laws, and therefore he must get rid of it, at all 
events. The scriptural part of the matter is easily evaded, 
but as to the main circumstance, he has nothing for it 
but boldly denying the fact, and asserting that the suf- 
ferings are neither universal nor necessary. He accor- 
dingly observes, — " The sufferings of women in child- 
bed have been cited as evidence, that the Creator has 
not intended the human being, under any circumstances, 
to execute all its functions entirely free from pain. But 
besides the obvious answer, that the objection applies 
only to one sex, and is, therefore, not to be too readily 
presumed to have its origin in nature, there is good reason 
to deny the assertion, and to ascribe the suffering in 
question to departures from the natural laws in either 
the structure or habits of the individuals who experience 
them." 

These good grounds which Mr Combe alludes to, to 
prove that the pains of parturition are not a provision of 
nature, consist in certain cases among women of the 
lower ranks, who have been delivered, or have delivered 
themselves, of illegitimate children, with so little pain, 
as to return almost immediately to their work, or make 
exertions, which to persons in better circumstances might 
appear very unusual at least, if not incredible. He also 
refers to the easy labours of Negresses, and women of 
other savage tribes, who are reported by some travellers 
to suffer comparatively little in child-birth. To this it 
may be answered, — first, that these cases are precisely 
similar to those which occur in regard to every thing else, 
where persons under strong excitement, or in circum- 



276 MR combe's views 

stances of urgent necessity, have made exertions which 
they never could have done under ordinary circumstances. 
Soldiers on a storming party, amidst the thundering of 
cannon, the explosion of mines, and surrounded by death 
in all its shapes, have been known, in the heat and eager- 
ness of the assault, to mount walls where there could 
hardly be said to be a breach, and to overcome difficulties 
of all kinds, which at a period of less fearful excitement, 
they would have been quite incapable of surmounting. 
Instances of this occurred in the late Peninsular War, 
at the sieges of Badajos and Ciuidad Rodrigo, when 
individuals who had been taken next day to the parts of 
the walls which they had scaled, would not believe that 
they had done so, and felt and declared themselves utterly 
incapable of doing the same again. Now, a woman, in 
any rank of life, who, to avoid disgrace, conceals her 
pregnancy, must, from the dread of discovery and the 
necessities of her situation, be in a state of excitement and 
desperation, not less, perhaps even greater than a soldier 
upon a forlorn hope, and will consequently be able to 
make similar exertions. But what a woman in such 
circumstances in a civilized country is likely to feel, may 
probably be felt universally by pregnant females among 
the savage tribes, who are known to be treated with such 
cruelty by their husbands, that they often long for death, 
and are said sometimes to murder their female infants, 
merely that they may not be subjected to the incessant 
cruelties which they know is to be their lot if they are 
allowed to survive. Such cases, therefore, are not within 
the general rule ; they are instances of that kind which 
every where prevail in nature, where great calamities and 
hardships are met by a wise and merciful provision of 
strength to bear what necessity imposes, and where one 
law of nature is thus found to neutralize and control 
another. 



ANSWERED. 277 

At the best, the cases referred to never can be under- 
stood as offering any objection to the general law. In 
this, as in every kind of suffering, it may happen that 
in some instances it is less severe than in others. It does 
not follow, although the suffering may be borne, and 
may not much affect the strength of the individual, that 
therefore there has been no suffering. We are not 
entitled to say, in any instance, that there has been none ; 
and even those in which there is least, cannot be 
regarded as exceptions to the rule, but only as extreme 
cases, — cases where the suffering has been the smallest 
possible. It is in vain to argue upon such grounds 
against the existence of an institution known to prevail 
in all ages, in all climates, and in all countries, in a 
greater or less degree, over the whole world. We have 
a perfect reliance on the uniformity of nature's opera- 
tions, and on the invariable connection between effects 
and causes; and, therefore, we believe that women, who 
are placed under exactly the same circumstances as 
those referred to by Mr Combe, will be able to bear 
their sufferings equally well. But if decent females in 
civilized countries are not to be relieved of the pains 
alluded to, until they are placed in the same circum- 
stances as women in the lower ranks, who conceal 
pregnancy to avoid disgrace, or the females of savage 
tribes, who are treated by their lords and masters worse 
than slaves, — if these are the conditions which the 
natural laws require to mitigate or to remove the pains 
of child-birth, it will be long before they receive any 
benefit from this magnificent discovery. The cure is 
obviously worse than the disease. 



2a 



278 RELATION BETWEEN 



CHAPTER XL 

ON THE RELATION BETWEEN SCIENCE AND SCRIPTURE. 

Mr Combe has, in his work on the Constitution of 
Man, laid down two different views bearing upon the 
subject of the relation between philosophy and theology, 
which are precisely the reverse of each other. 

In his introductory chapter, he first accuses theologians 
of having fallen into gross errors in doctrine, in conse- 
quence of their having formed their systems in an age 
" when there was no sound philosophy, and almost no 
knowledge of physical science," and when, consequently, 
" they were unavoidably ignorant of the elementary 
qualities of human nature, and of the influence of organi- 
zation on the mental powers,, the great link which 
connects the moral and physical world. They were 
unacquainted," he observes, " with the relation subsisting 
between the mind and external nature, and could not, 
by possibility, divine to what extent individuals and 
society were capable of being improved by natural means. 
In the history of man, they had read chiefly of misery and 
crime, and had, in their own age, beheld much of both. 
They were, therefore, naturally led to form a low estimate 
of human nature, and to expect little good from the 
development of its inherent capabilities."* After some 
farther observations in the same strain, and expatiating 
on the importance of philosophy towards obtaining 
accurate views in regard to religion, he states, that at 
present, " to all practical ends connected with theology, 
the philosophy of nature might as well not exist. 
Divines," he remarks, " have frequently applied scientific 
* Constitution of Man, p. 4, col. 2. 



SCIENCE AND SCRIPTURE. 279 

discoveries in proving the existence and developing the 
character of the Deity, but they have failed in applying 
either the discoveries themselves, or the knowledge of 
the divine character obtained by means of them, to the 
constitution of any system of mental philosophy capable 
of combining harmoniously with religion, and promoting 
the improvement of the human race."* And he concludes 
the chapter thus, — " They (the divines) have complained 
of war waged openly or secretly by philosophy against 
religion ; but they have not duly considered, whether 
religion itself warrants them in treating philosophy and 
all its dictates with neglect, in their instruction of the 
people. True philosophy is a revelation of the divine 
will manifested in creation ; it harmonizes with all truth, 
and cannot with impunity be neglected/'f 

In the second chapter he states, in regard to his 
favourite natural laws, " Before religion can yield its 
full practical fruits in this world, it must be wedded to 
a philosophy founded on these laws," — (laws, it will be 
observed, that are as yet very imperfectly known, and 
which may not be all discovered for thousands of years 
to come ;) "it must borrow light and strength from 
them, and in return communicate its powerful sanction 
in enforcing obedience to their dictates.''^ 

Mr Combe has here brought many grave and serious 
accusations against our divines for their neglect of 
human philosophy, and stated very plainly his conviction 
of the impossibility of their forming a system of religion 
that shall be of any practical utility without its aid. 
He here seems to hold that they cannot too soon 
embrace the doctrines of Phrenology as the true science 
of mind, — trace out its full correspondence and har- 
mony with Scripture, and with the doctrines of our holy 

* Constitution of Man, p. 5, col. 1. t lb. p. 7, col. 2. 

J lb. p. 10, col. 2, at bottom. 



278 OPPOSITE VIEWS 

religion, and bring the whole to bear with accumulated 
power upon the understandings and the consciences of 
their hearers. He is in such haste in regard to this, that 
although Phrenology is a doctrine — not of yesterday, 
that is too remote — though it is only a science of the 
present hour — only at this moment emerging above the 
mental horizon, and still encumbered by the mists and 
fogs of misapprehension and error, — he would have them 
take it even now, in its present crude and undigested 
shape, and mix it up with the oracles of heavenly truth, 
the message intrusted to them by the unerring dictates 
of divine inspiration, He accuses them loudly of neglect 
of duty, in not having done so already ; and in the con- 
eluding part of his work, he declares that " the first 
divine of comprehensive intellect and powerful moral 
feeling, who shall take courage, and introduce the 
natural laws into his discourses, and teach the people 
the works and institutions of the Creator, will reap a 
great reward in usefulness and pleasure. If this course 
shall, as heretofore, be neglected, the people, who are 
daily adding to their knowledge of philosophy and prac- 
tical science, will in a few years look down with disrespect 
on their clerical guides, and probably force them, by 
s pressure from without,' to remodel the entire system of 
pulpit instruction." * 

This is one view of the subject, ancLcertainly a strong, 
one, expressed in language not remarkable for its mild- 
ness and courtesy ; and it would not be very wonderful 
if, in some other part of his voluminous writings, Mr 
Combe had somewhat modified his opinions upon this 
particular point, and expressed them somewhat diffe- 
rently. It is, however, a little extraordinary, that in 
this very work itself, and in the very same introductory 
chapter in which he brings his sweeping accusation 
* Constitution of Man, p. 97, col. 1. 



STATED BY MR COMBE. 281 

against divines for their neglect of human philosophy, 
he expresses, in terms equally decided, an opinion the 
very opposite of that to which I have above referred. 
He is arguing, that as God is the author of nature as 
well as of Scripture, it is impossible that any truth cor- 
rectly deduced from an examination of the one, can be 
at variance with a correct interpretation of the other. 
" On the ground," he observes, " that organs and 
faculties have been given by the Creator, they (the 
philosophers) are entitled to maintain that a philosophy 
of morals, correctly deduced from their constitution, 
must accord with all correct interpretations of Scripture, 
otherwise religion can have no substantial foundation. 
If two sound interpretations of the divine will, as recorded 
in creation and in Scripture, can by possibility contradict 
each other, we can have no confidence in the moral 
Governor of the world. As, then, all real philosophy 
and all true religion must harmonize, there will be a 
manifest advantage in cultivating each by itself till its 
full dimensions, limits, and applications shall be brought 
clearly to light. We may then advantageously compare 
them, and use the one as a means of elucidating or cor- 
recting our views of the other."* 

It is needless to make any commentary on the above 
passages, except to observe that the views are precisely 
the opposite of each other ; and as they occur in the 
same work, and almost in the same page of that work, 
we are clearly entitled to call upon Mr Combe to declare 
explicitly to which of the two he chooses to adhere. 
Whatever may have been the case when he wrote the 
Constitution of Man, and although he might have been, 
at that time, equally balanced between oposite opinions, 
it would rather appear that he has since found it advis- 
able to lean to the sentiment expressed in the last quoted 

* Constitution of Man, p. 7, col. 1. 
2 a 2 



282 GROSS INCONSISTENCY 

passage. In a letter addressed by him to Dr Neill, as 
one of the patrons of the University, on the occasion of 
his being candidate for the Professorship of Logic, 
he gives the following exposition of his views on the 
subject : — 

" I regard religion as a sacred subject, ichich ought 
not lightly to be brought into collision with philosophy?* 
" It appears to me more advantageous to investigate 
nature by herself first, and to proceed to compare her 
phenomena with Scripture, only after being certain that 
ice hare rightly observed and interpreted them. 

" By this method we shall preserve our minds calm 
and unbiassed for the investigation of truth : we shall 
test nature by herself, which is the proper standard by 
which to try her ; and we shall avoid bringing discredit 
on Revelation by involving it in unseemly conflicts with 
natural phenomena." 

We have no right, perhaps, to insist that Mr Combe 
should, in his philosophical speculations, agree in every 
point with the doctrines of our divines ; we have no 
right to insist that where he conscientiously differs from 
them, he should state that difference in language uni- 
formly complaisant and courteous ; but we have a right 
to insist that he should be consistent, that he should not 
lay down one rule in one page of his work, and a per- 
fectly opposite one in another, and that he should not 
lay down rules as binding upon his theological opponents 
which he himself breaks through without scruple in 
every chapter — wherever, in short, it happens to suit 
his purpose, If he insists, as he seems to do, that 
divines and theologians shall refrain from attacking or 
criticising his views, or comparing them with those 
which they have deduced from their interpretations of 
Scripture, c; till their full dimensions, limits, and appli- 
cations shall be brought clearly to light," then, most 



283 

assuredly, he has no right whatever to attack the opinions 
and doctrines of theologians, or to compare them with 
the views derived from his investigation of nature, till 
he can say that these views have reached their full 
dimensions, and that we may be perfectly certain that 
the natural phenomena have been throughout rightly 
observed and interpreted. 

If, therefore, Mr Combe shall finally adhere to the 
view of the subject last quoted, and stated in his letter 
to Dr Neillj it may be expected, that, for the sake of 
consistency, he will expunge from the next edition of 
his work, the whole tirade of abuse which he has so 
unsparingly lavished on the clergy, on account of their 
refraining from mixing up the doctrines of our most 
holy faith with the speculations of human philosophy — 
speculations, as yet, confessedly crude and imperfect, 
and which, certainly, are at this moment very far from 
having <; attained their full dimensions," or from having 
" their whole limits and applications brought clearly to 
light." 

Apart entirely from the inconsistency above noticed, 
from which Mr Combe may clear himself as he best 
may, there is something quite preposterous in the whole 
of the accusations he brings against the clergy. He 
says, " they have frequently applied scientific discoveries 
in proving the existence and developing the character of 
the Deity." And so far, doubtless, they have done well; 
but he adds, " they have failed in applying either the 
discoveries themselves, or the knowledge of the divine 
character obtained by means of them, to the construction 
of any system of philosophy capable of combining har- 
moniously with religion, and promoting the improvement 
of the human race." * 

* Constitution of Man, p. 5, col. 1 . 



284 RELIGION AND PHILOSOPHY 

It may be here remarked, that it is not the business 
or the duty of divines to form " Systems of Philosophy." 
It is the business of philosophers to do so, and if they 
perform this task correctly, there is no fear whatever 
that they will succeed in establishing any doctrine incon- 
sistent with a sound interpretation of Scripture. The 
truth is, that the field of philosophical investigation, and 
the field of theological investigation, lie entirely separate; 
and if those who labour in them respectively, keep each 
within their own bounds, and do not invade the proper 
province of the other, there can be no danger of their 
ever coming into unseemly collision. The nearest 
approach that they can ever make to each other, — the 
utmost that can be expected in regard to their throwing 
light upon each other, — will be this, that when we shall 
be able to attain views of both that shall be perfect and 
complete in all their parts, it will be seen that there is 
not (as we are now satisfied there cannot be) any incon- 
sistency between them ; but, on the contrary, that there 
is (as we are now satisfied there must be) a perfect and 
a beautiful harmony between them, — the one of them 
reflecting an image of the other, as in a smooth mirror. 

In the meantime, and until the philosophers shall have 
completed their investigations, and are able to exhibit 
their doctrines " in their full dimensions, limits, and 
applications," — and after we are perfectly certain that 
they have succeeded " in rightly observing and inter- 
preting nature," — Mr Combe is quite right in saying, 
that the two studies should be kept separate. And this 
is exactly that which divines have done, and are doing, 
and that for which Mr Combe has most inconsistently 
lavished upon them all kinds of vituperation, threatening 
them with the contempt of " the people," and the 
" pressure from without," forcing them " to remodel the 
entire system of pulpit instruction."* 

* Constitution of Man, p. 97, col. 1. 



OUGHT TO BE STUDIED SEPARATELY. 285 

By persevering in the course which they have hitherto 
followed, divines will best comply with the injunctions 
of their great Master, who sent forth his disciples, not 
certainly to teach the natural laws, or any system of 
human philosophy, but with the command to preach the 
Gospel to all nations. They will thus best imitate the 
example of these apostles themselves, one of the most 
zealous and energetic of whom, (and the only one, it 
may be observed, who was endowed with any portion of 
human learning,) declared with regard to himself and his 
brethren, — " The Jews require a sign, and the Greeks 
seek rfter wisdom : But we preach Christ crucified ; 
unto the Jews a stumbling-block, and unto the Greeks 
foolishness; but unto them which are called, both Jews 
and Greeks, Christ, the power of God, and the wisdom 
of God."* 

This apostle, in the same epistle to the Corinthians, 
when addressing those very Greeks, who, as he had 
previously mentioned, " sought after wisdom," and 
looked upon the doctrine of the Cross as " foolishness," 
emphatically declares, " I determined not to know any 
thing among you save Jesus Christ, and him crucifled."f 
This entirely accords with one of the views stated by Mr 
Combe ; to the other view stated by him, it is entirely 
opposed : but whether he shall adhere to the one view 
or the other, our divines may well be excused if they 
consider Saint Paul a safer guide than Mr Combe, and 
the gospels and epistles of the New Testament more 
clearly within the object of their mission than the 
" Natural Laws" or the " Constitution of Man." 

Mr Combe was, at one time, a great admirer of Lord 
Bacon, and considered it as the highest honour to be 
ranked among the number of his followers. Of late 3 
* 1 Cor. i. 22—24. t Ibid. ii. 2. 



286 lord bacon's rules 

however, his admiration of this prince of philosophical 
writers seems to be manifestly abated ; and in his 
magnum opus, the " Constitution of Man,'' it is remark- 
able, that the name of Bacon is not once mentioned 
from the beginning to the end of the book. This is the 
more surprising, as Lord Bacon has delivered his senti- 
ments very fully on the connection between Science and 
Scripture, to which Mr Combe has devoted an entire 
chapter. Mr Combe, at one time, quoted Lord Bacon's 
opinion on this very point, and laid no little stress on 
his authority ; and his subsequent silence on this topic 
may be sufficiently accounted for, by his finding that the 
authority of Bacon is entirely against him. 

Lord Bacon states it as one great cause of errors in 
religion, " the taking an aim at divine matters by human, 
which cannot but breed mixture of imaginations." Now, 
this is exactly what Mr Combe has attempted to do; 
endeavouring, by arguments drawn from human science, 
to ascertain the character and attributes of the Deity, — 
what is his will concerning us his creatures, and what 
are the feelings and principles that guide his dealings 
towards us. In another place, Lord Bacon observes, 
" The prejudice hath been infinite, that both divine and 
human knowledge have received by the intermingling 
and tempering of the one with the other ; as that which 
hath filled the one full of heresies, and the other full of 
speculative factions and vanities."* Mr Combe has also 
attempted to do this, and he pours out the vials of his 
wrath against the divines, because they refuse to do the 
same thing, and " intermingle and temper" the doctrines 
of our holy religion with arguments drawn from human 
philosophy. Against this, Lord Bacon records his 
opinion in the strongest manner, in various parts of his 
works. 

* Bacon's Works, Montagu's edition, vol. i. p. 259. 



FOR AVOIDING HERESY. 287 

In his Meditationes Sacra, in treating of heresies, he 
quotes the following text, to which he afterwards refers 
on numerous occasions : — " Ye do err, not knowing the 
Scriptures, nor the power of God." 

" This canon," he observes, " is the mother of all 
canons against heresy. The causes of error are two, — 
the ignorance of the will of God, and the ignorance, or 
not sufficient consideration, of his power. The will of 
God is more revealed in the Scriptures, and therefore 
the precept is, ' Search the Scriptures.' The power of 
God is more revealed by the creatures, and therefore 
the precept is, l Behold and consider the creatures.' "* 
This is a favourite idea with Lord Bacon, and is re- 
peated by him many times in different places. 

But the distinction between divine and human know- 
ledge, and the impossibility of our reaching the one of 
them by means of the other, is more fully set forth in 
the following passage, in the Discourse on the Interpre- 
tation of Nature : — " Wherefore, seeing that knowledge 
is of the number of those things which are to be accepted 
of with caution and distinction — being now to open a 
fountain, such as it is not easy to discern where the 
issues and streams thereof will take and fall — I thought 
it good and necessary, in the first place, to make a 
strong and sound head and bank to rule and guide the 
course of the waters, by setting down this position, or 
firmament, namely, that all knowledge is to be 
limited by religion, and to be referred to use and 
action. 

" For if any man shall think, by view and inquiry 
into these sensible and material things, to attain to any 
light for revealing of the nature or will of God, he shall 

DANGEROUSLY ABUSE HIMSELF. It IS true, that the 

contemplation of the creatures of God hath for end, as 
* Bacon's Works, ut supra, vol. i. p. 217, 218. 



2>5 bacon's rules against mixing 

to the nature of the creatures themselves, knowledge ; 
but. as to the nature of God,. 110 knowledge, but wonder, 
which is nothing else but contemplation broken off, and 

ng itself. Nay, farther, as it was aptly said by one 
of Plato's school.. ; The sense of man resembles the sun, 

:h openeth and revealeth the terrestrial globe, but 
obscureth and concealeth the celestial; so doth the 
sense discover natural things, but darken and shut up 
the divine. Therefore attend his unU as himself openeth 
iU and give unto faith that which unto taith 

BELONGETH."'" 

The same views are repeated in the treatise, On the 

Achx of Learn i ng, *'•' And, as for the third 

point, (that we do not presume, by the contemplation ot 
nature, to attain 10 the mysteries of God,) it deser 
to be a little stood upon, and not to be lightly passed 
over. For if any man shall think. niiry 

into these sensible and material things, to attain that 
light wherein he may reveal unto himself the nature or 
will ot God, then indeed he is spoiled by vain philosophy. 
For the contemplation of God's creatures and wc 
produced! (having regard to the works and creatures 
■selves knowledge, but, having regard'to God, no 
perfect knowledge, but wonder, which is broken know- 
ledge. And, therefore, it was most aptly said by one of 
P.ato's school, •' that the sense of man carrieth a resem- 
blance with the sun, which, as we see. openeth and 
revealeth all the terrestrial globe, but then it obscureth 
and concealeth the stars and celestial globe: so doth the 
sense discover natural things, but d; . and shutteth 

up divine.' And hence it is true that it hath procec 
that diverse great learned men have been heretical, whilst 

* Babouft Weds, ui svpra. vol. i. p. 257, 258. 



DIVINE AND HUMAN KNOWLEDGE. 289 

they have sought to fly up to the Deity by the waxen 
wings of the senses."* 

There are various other passages in Lord Bacon's 
works to the like purpose and effect. In regard to 
natural theology, he states, — " The bounds of this 
knowledge are, that it sufficeth to convince atheism, but 
not to inform religion. Wherefore, by the contempla- 
tion of nature, to induce and enforce the acknowledg- 
ment of God, and to demonstrate his power, providence, 
and goodness, is an excellent argument, and has been 
excellently handled by divers. 

" But, on the other side, out of the contemplation of 
nature, or ground of human knowledge, to induce any 
verity or persuasion concerning points of faith, is, in my 
judgment, not safe. Dafidei qu&fidei sunt."f 

The same distinction is again drawn in treating of 
theology proper. " Wherefore we conclude, that sacred 
theology, (which, in our idiom, we call divinity,) is 
grounded only upon the word and oracle of God, and not 
upon the light of nature ; for it is written, ' Coeli enarrant 
gloriam Dei ; ' but it is not written, Coeli enarrant volun- 
tatem Dei ; but of that it is said, ' To the law and to the 
testimony ; if they speak not according to this word, it is 
because there is no light in them.' (Isaiah, viii. 20.)" J 

I have quoted these repeated statements of the same 
or similar ideas, because the repetition proves, that what 
Lord Bacon thus lays down was no unweighed or passing 
thought, but his fixed and permanent belief concerning 
the most important of all subjects. Now, what is it that 
he so repeatedly states ? That the Scriptures are the 
only sure foundation for any speculation respecting the 
will and purposes of God, as the works of creation are 
the only sure foundation for any speculation respecting 

* Bacon's Works, ut supra, vol i. p. 257, 258. t Ibid. ii. 128, 129. 
% Ibid. i. 299. 

2b 



290 PROPER SPHERES OF RELIGION 

his power; that it is unwise, and unsafe, and unphiloso- 
phical, to mix and confound these two kinds of know- 
ledge — to argue respecting the will of God from any 
view and inquiry into the works of creation, or to 
attempt to explain the works of his power by any state- 
ments contained in, or arguments drawn from, the 
Scriptures. Mr Combe has not only himself offended 
against the first of these rules, but he is angry at our 
divines for not having offended against it also. 

The whole scope of his essay is directed to shew 
what the intentions and purposes of the Creator are — 
in other words, what is his will — in the arrangements he 
has made with regard to the material world, and the 
relations he has established between us and the objects 
among which we are placed. He has gone farther, and 
carried his thoughts to the higher aim of shewing what 
are and what are not the feelings with which the Deity 
regards the faults and errors of his creatures. 

I do not inquire here, whether, in the conclusions he 
has come to respecting the purposes, intentions, and 
will of God, Mr Combe is right or wrong ; all I mean 
to say at present is, that in these speculations he has 
undoubtedly overstepped that great " position and firma- 
ment" which, as if with a prophetic view of such specu- 
lations as this, Lord Bacon has laid down " as a strong 
and sound head and bank, to rule and guide the course 
of the waters." Neither do I inquire at this point 
whether the doctrines which divines have deduced from 
their interpretations of Scripture, which are objected to 
by Mr Combe, and which he so unceremoniously de- 
nounces as errors, be altogether correct in all their parts. 
Of that I have spoken elsewhere ; but what I say here 
is, that, in resorting to Scripture for information respect- 
ing man's original state by nature — the will of God 
respecting him — the moral law — and the nature and 



AND PHILOSOPHY, DISTINCT. 291 

extent of man's responsibility, — the divines have applied 
to that source which Lord Bacon has so repeatedly, so 
anxiously, and so earnestly stated to be the only source 
from which any sound information on these subjects can 
be derived. They have, as his lordship has expressed 
it, " attended the will of God as himself hath opened it, 
and given unto faith that which unto faith belonged!." 

It accords entirely with this view, and with the so 
often repeated rules of Lord Bacon on this subject, that 
God, who does nothing in vain, has condescended to 
make a revelation to man, shewing what was his original 
state at his creation — how he has fallen from that state 
— what God himself has done for our restoration — and 
what he requires on our part, to enable us to avail 
ourselves of so great goodness. Had we been capable 
of discovering this by our unassisted reason, it would not 
have been thus revealed. Phrenology has not been so 
revealed, nor any of the sciences, because w 7 e were 
capable of discovering them for ourselves. But this 
most important of all knowledge — the knowledge of 
the relation in which we stand to our Maker, and of 
our responsibility to him — has been specially revealed, 
because it was not otherwise discoverable. To this reve- 
lation, then, we must resort, if we would know any 
thing of these relations, and that responsibility ; and it 
is the only philosophical mode of proceeding to do so. 

If we proceed according to the Baconian rules, and if 
theologians on the one hand, and philosophers on the 
other, limit themselves to those points of inquiry which 
properly fall within their respective spheres, there is 
no possibility that human science can ever come into 
collision with the revealed Word of God. According to 
the simple but comprehensive words of our Shorter Cate- 
chism, the Scriptures were vouchsafed to teach us " What 
man is to believe concerning God, and what dutv God 



292 MEANING OF BACONS RULES, 

requires of man." On these points the authority of 
Scripture is, and ever must remain, paramount ; and no 
deductions of human science, let these be carried never 
so far, can ever prove any thing contrary to, or incon- 
sistent with, what Scripture has clearly revealed upon 
these points ; nor is it even to be expected that, in such 
matters, it can ever yield any material assistance towards 
the interpretation of Scripture. 

If it be asked, Where then is the legitimate province of 
ethics, or the philosophy of morals ? I must again refer 
to Lord Bacon. Of this he speaks as follows : — " And 
if it be said, that the care of men's minds belongeth to 
sacred divinity, it is most true ; but yet moral philosophy 
may be preferred unto her as a wise servant and humble 
handmaid. For as the psalm saith, that the eyes of the 
handmaid look perpetually towards the mistress, and yet, 
no doubt, many things are left to the discretion of the 
handmaid to discern of the mistress's will ; so ought 
moral philosophy to give a constant attention to the 
doctrines of divinity, and yet so as it may yield of her- 
self, within due limits, many sound and profitable 
directions."* 

Such are the rules laid down by Lord Bacon, with 
regard to the respective boundaries and limits of revealed 
truth and philosophical investigation, — rules which no 
philosopher has ever ventured to controvert, and which 
no one has ever transgressed with impunity. Let us 
see what they amount to. What is the meaning of 
" knowledge being limited by religion," except this, — 
that we are not to speculate from grounds of human 
knowledge, upon points which are clearly and indubi- 
tably revealed to us as true, and which we are to receive 
as matters of faith ? What is the meaning of " giving 
unto faith that which unto faith belongeth," but just the 
. * Bacon's Works. 



AS APPLIED BY MR COMBE. 293 

same thing, — that whenever any thing is clearly revealed 
to us as true, in point of faith, all speculation as to its 
truth must thenceforth be at an end ? Of this nature we 
may safely reckon the facts revealed in the Scriptures, 
respecting the original perfection, the fall of man, and 
the consequent depravity of the whole human race, and 
the utter inability of man to regain his lost perfection, or 
to restore himself to the favour of God by any exertion 
of his own. What is so revealed on these points must be 
held as true, and there an end. This is giving unto 
faith, that which unto faith belongeth. 

But what does Mr Combe understand by giving unto 
faith what unto faith belongeth ? From this essay, we 
must conclude, that he understands it to mean — giving 
to it precisely nothing at all. The doctrines, or rather 
the facts, which I have just now mentioned, are written 
throughout the Scriptures as with a sunbeam; but Mr 
Combe denounces them, in the most positive terms, to 
be fatal errors, which have infected and spoiled the 
entire system of Christian theology ; and he calls upon 
our divines to renounce these doctrines which they see 
recorded in every page of the Bible, and from hence- 
forth to teach the people Phrenology and the natural 
laws! Is this giving to faith, that which unto faith 
belongeth ? 

A very acute writer of the last century, Dr Jonathan 
Swift, in a work which is not often quoted in a philoso- 
phical discourse, (his Directions to Servants,) gives the 
following very significant advice to all domestics what- 
soever : — " If your master or lady happen once in their 
lives to accuse you wrongfully, you are a happy servant ; 
for you have nothing more to do, than for every fault 
you commit while you are in their service, to put them 
in mind of that false accusation, and protest yourself 

2b2 



294 CASE OF GALILEO 

equally innocent in the present. Mr Combe, in com- 
mon with all that class of philosophers who have a 
talent for making discoveries which do not exactly tally 
with the doctrines and opinions of our religious teachers, 
is in this happy predicament ; for, as is well known to 
the philosophical world, the Pope and the Cardinals, 
between two and three centuries ago, condemned Galileo 
to the prisons of the Inquisition, for presuming to 
demonstrate, on the principles of human science, the 
diurnal motion of the earth round its axis, which they 
chose to affirm to be contrary to reason and to Scripture. 
Every person is now satisfied that, in this particular case, 
Galileo was stating nothing but what was true, and that 
the Pope and the Cardinals were entirely in the wrong. 
This is, in its way, a most excellent story, and assuredly 
it has not been lost upon Mr Combe, for we find him 
quoting it upon all occasions. We have it stated in the 
introduction to his System of Phrenology ; we have it 
again in the Constitution of Man;* it is referred to almost 
in every number of the Phrenological Journal; and, in his 
Letter to Dr Neill, mentioned in the Preface, he comes 
down upon us once more with this never ending story of 
Galileo and the Cardinals. The use he makes of it, too, 
seems to be strictly in conformity to the advice of the 
Dean of St Patrick's ; for whenever it is objected to any 
of his dogmas, or opinions, that they are not conformable 
to the doctrines of Scripture, or any thing else, he 
immediately quotes the case of Galileo, and maintains, 
that as the Cardinals were wrong in accusing him of 
unscriptural doctrine, so we must now be equally wrong 
in the objections brought from Scripture against him, 
Mr Combe. It never occurs to him as being possible 
that there can be any error on his side. The Pope and 
the Cardinals were wrong in their attack upon Galileo, 
* Pase 89. 



AND THE CARDINALS. 295 

and, therefore, in all cases, divines must be in the wrong, 
in objecting to doctrines of any kind whatever, which 
may hereafter be announced by any one choosing to call 
himself a philosopher. 

There is, however, this essential difference between 
the doctrine taught by Galileo, and those subjects to 
which Mr Combe has now directed so much of his 
attention, — that the former did not lie properly within the 
province of Scripture, whereas the latter does. The 
Scriptures were not given to teach men astronomy and 
geology, or any branch of natural science. Objections 
brought against them, therefore, drawn from particular 
interpretations of Scripture, were quite out of place. 
The cardinals objected to the Galilean doctrine about 
the rotation of the earth, and in doing so, they erred, 
" not knowing the power of God." Modern divines 
were equally wrong in objecting to the doctrines of 
geology, for the Bible never was intended to teach 
geology. It was intended to give man an account of 
his origin, chief end, and final destination ; and so far 
as the first of these points is concerned, geology is 
precisely in accordance with Scripture, — at least it 
contains nothing inconsistent with it. Mr Combe 
would be equally invulnerable, were divines, on the 
ground of any opinions drawn from Scripture, to object 
to the fundamental doctrines of Phrenology, to deny 
the correspondence between cerebral development -and 
mental manifestation, or its uses as now successfully 
applied to the cure of mental, or as it rather may be 
called, cerebral disease. On these points Mr Combe 
would stand as on a rock, and might defy every attempt 
to put him down by the assumed authority of Scripture, 
for this good reason, that Scripture says nothing on the 
subject more than on any other part of physical or 
medical science. The case of Galileo is here precisely 



296 THE SCRIPTURES EXHIBIT 

in point; and Mr Combe would be perfectly justified in 
quoting it. It comes to be a very different thing, however, 
when Mr Combe assumes the offensive, and attacks 
theologians on their own peculiar ground, as when he 
denounces as errors, the doctrines of the Fall and the 
depravity of human nature. These are doctrines which it 
was the purpose and intention of the Scriptures to teach, 
doctrines which lie at the very root and foundation of 
our faith, and without the admission of which the whole 
scheme of Christianity would appear to be without end 
or object, and instead of an important reality, become 
like the baseless fabric of a vision. On such a point as 
this, Mr Combe and the theologians seem to have 
exactly changed places. Galileo will afford him no 
assistance here. In fact, he is as much in error, in 
assailing the divines on such points, as the Pope and the 
Cardinals were in their attack upon poor Galileo. He 
has not taken the right method to arrive at the truth, 
nor resorted to the only source from which a knowledge 
of it can be derived. 

Mr Combe observes,* that " all existing interpreta- 
tions of Scripture have been adopted in ignorance of the 
facts, that every person in whose brain the animal organs 
preponderate greatly over the moral and intellectual 
powers, has a native and instinctive tendency to immoral 
conduct, and vice versa ; and that the influence of 
organization is fundamental — that is to say, that no 
means are yet known by which an ill formed brain may 
be made to manifest the moral and intellectual faculties 
with the same success as a brain of excellent configu- 
ration." To this I answer, that the facts here stated 
with regard to the brain have nothing to do with the 
interpretation of Scripture, and can have no influence 
whatever upon such interpretation. Apart from the 
* Constitution of Man, p. 89. col. 2. 



A KNOWLEDGE OF HUMAN NATURE. 297 

mere physical facts of cerebral configuration, and the 
correspondence between it and mental manifestation, 
there is no information yet gained on the subject of the 
human mind that was not equally known to the divines 
who framed our existing systems of theology, or which 
has not been known to all practical purposes since the 
beginning of the world. It has always been known that 
men were variously endowed with natural gifts; that 
some had natural propensities to evil and immoral 
conduct, and that others were either naturally inclined 
to goodness, or, at all events, were much more easily 
trained to the practice of virtue. There is nothing in 
Scripture contrary to this, and various quotations may 
be made to shew that this is exactly the representation 
of human nature which is there given. In the descrip- 
tions of human character given in Scripture, there is none 
exhibited as absolutely perfect, and I have yet to learn 
that Phrenology shews us any thing that contradicts this. 
All have some imperfection, but still some are repre- 
sented as much more favourably constituted than others. 
The different characters described in the historical 
portions of the Bible shew as great a diversity of natural 
propensity and sentiment as can be contended for by 
any phrenologist. In the parable of the good Samaritan 
this diversity is admitted, and the highest character 
attributed to a member of an alien and a hostile tribe. 
It is admitted, even with respect to some of the heathen, 
that " these not having the law, are a law unto them- 
selves."* And to go no farther, it is admitted to be the 
case even with regard to the effect of spiritual influences, 
and moral and religious instruction, in the parable of 
the Sower, where some of the seed is stated to have fallen 
by the way side — some upon stony places — some is said 
to have fallen among thorns, and some upon good ground. 
* Romans, ii. 14. 



-95 OX THE MEA5S OF 

I am aware that in this instance it will be contended, 
that even the latter, the good ground, would require the 
preparation of spiritual influence before it was ready 
for reception of the seed ; but even here a natural dif- 
ference is acknowledged, in as much as we are told that 
it produced *= some thirty, some sixty, and some an 
hundred fold." There is nothing in this contrary to 
phrenological observation; nor has Phrenology added 
any thing to our knowledge, so far as regards the more 
or less favourable constitution of die human mind and 
character which can at all affect our interpretation of 
Scripture, 

<-';-. e :':..:: z. ;.:":■■::. "..;■ :e s:.i:ri -l.s :rr:3i-. :r.i: 
whatever the natural character, and the cerebral organi- 
zation may be, there are no human means of improving 
either besides those of moral and religions instruction. 
There can be no doubt whatever, that these, if properly, 
judiciously, and steadily applied, particularly at the 
earlier periods of life, have a very great effect in impro- 
ving the natural character; and there is also great 
reason to believe that they produce a corresponding effect 
in altering the cerebral organization.* There are no 



tkms tta / ma y c tsu ae a Vu ima w if, an entirely new department of 

:; :ie :':— :: :if i 

::' :l^.::i:. >s_l-rr :::~ Lz: £-_>:.:_ _ izi ~ :rJ. -"iLzLzz. ire 
if :: ri'M f-ri.~p.f. r:»:»i >x:f~7. ir.i 
eramplre make it probable that the 
■t a stand, and that it may be improved, or the contrary, at any 

s placed. I hare bo V^tatinw in saving, tkat tins, if it shall be 

:tL 7 v^r-K :y 






IMPROVING THE CHARACTER. 299 

other means of effecting this. What does Mr Combe 
mean, then, in the following passage ? i; I have heard it 
said, that Christianity affords a better and more instan- 
taneous remedy for human depravity than improvement 
of the cerebral organization.''' How does he propose to 
improve the cerebral organization ? Can we reduce, for 
instance, an inconveniently large organ of Destruc:.:-:- 
ness, by the application of physical pressure ? Can we, 
by any new or unheard of phrenological operation, open 
the cavity of the skull, and insert into it an additional 
ounce or two oi Benevolence. Veneration, or Justice ? 
If we could do this, we might institute a comparison 
between the influence of Christianity, and such an 
;; instantaneous improvement of cerebral organization.''' 
But I have not heard of any cases oi this kind, except 
some which have been proposed in derision of the whole 
doctrine. The whole passage is a specimen of utter 
nonsense, and sheer downright absurd::; - 

Another point may be mentioned, to which Mr 
Combe seems to pay no attention, and that is, that 
there have been many cases of individuals of excellent 

elopment, possessing a large endowment of the higher 
sentiments and intellectual faculties, who, for want of 
having directed those faculties to their proper objects, 

e lived and died without a spark of devotional feeling, 
or without ever seeking, or being at all conscious of 
the : any religious influences : and who, even 

on their death-beds, shewed an utter disbelief in, and 
dislike of all mention of Christian doctrines. I could 
name individuals of this class, who have, in our own 
day, adorned the walks of literature and philosophy, 
who, in point of mere cerebral c . _ ; n ati : n , d d not yield 

fact that has been added to our knowledge, and the most important 
contribution to the science of Phrenology, since the period of the 
discoveries of Gall. 



300 

even to such men as Luther and Melancthon. There 
are many examples of others, who, up to a certain 
period, were perfectly careless on the subject of divine 
truth, but in whom some circumstance, apparently 
accidental, such as the death of a favourite companion, 
the listening to an impressive sermon, a conversation 
with a friend, or even the casual remark of a stranger, 
has awakened a train of totally different feelings, which 
have rendered them from that time forward, serious, 
pious, and prayerful Christians, and induced upon them 
a change of character, well known and obvious to the 
whole world. There are other cases of individuals, far 
from possessing any refined sentiments or superior 
intellect, but who have early imbibed and firmly main- 
tained through life a portion of true Christian principles ; 
and amidst many lapses into sin, and much weakness 
and imperfection, have kept fast the faith, and died in 
a state of genuine penitence and firm reliance on the 
merits of a Saviour. There are many other varieties ; 
but this may be said of all, that whatever the character 
may be, however high and noble, or the contrary, 
Christianity will improve it, and that, without it, there 
is none which approaches, within a thousand degrees, 
even our poor and defective ideas of perfection. This 
is the doctrine of divines, and I can see nothing what- 
ever in the facts disclosed by Phrenology, or in any 
just inference from these facts, which is at all at variance 
with it. 

Mr Combe concludes his observations on this subject 
as follows : — " My inference therefore is, that the Divine 
Spirit, revealed in Scripture as a power influencing the 
human mind, invariably acts in harmony with, the laws of 
organization ; because the latter, as emanating from the 
same source, can "never be in contradiction with the 
former, and because a well constituted brain is a condi- 



BUT DOES NOT ALTER THE CHARACTER. 301 

lion essential to the existence of Christian dispositions." 
I am by no means sure that I understand the meaning 
of this passage. There appears, at first sight, something 
presumptuous in attempting to set bounds to the opera- 
tion of the Holy Spirit. We are told by the highest 
authority upon this subject, that its operation is alto- 
gether inscrutable by our understandings. " The wind 
bloweth where it listeth, and thou nearest the sound 
thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh and whither 
it goeth. So is every one that is born of the Spirit."* 
This is a subject which lies beyond the reach of human 
reason, and it is quite unphilosophical, and altogether 
absurd and foolish for us to pretend to predicate any 
thing whatever respecting it. If the Divine Spirit acts 
upon and influences the mind, who shall set bounds to 
its influence in so acting ? 

If, in the passage quoted, it is intended to be said, 
that the Spirit influences those, and those only, who 
possess the highest and best endowment of natural 
sentiments and intellectual qualities, it is not true. 
Experience shews that many possessing the very best 
natural sentiments, continue through life utter strangers 
to Christian principles. Some with high feelings of 
veneration, never once raise their minds to the adoration 
of their Maker and Saviour, never put up a single 
petition for the sanctifying aid of the Spirit : while many 
a poor, weak, erring, and offending mortal, conscious of 
manifold failings and sins, has, through divine influence, 
been brought to a true sense of his state, and has applied 
for and obtained a comforting assurance of mercy and 
pardon. Christianity is the religion of sinners. Christ 
himself declared, " I come not to call the righteous, but 
sinners to repentance."! The meaning is, I came not 

* Gospel of St John. iii. 8. 
t St Matthew, ix. 13. 
2 c 



302 CHARACTERISTICS OF THE APOSTLES. 

to call those who think themselves righteous,* but those 
who are sensible of their manifold sins and imperfections, 
and willing to apply to a higher power than their own 
for light and assistance to guide them. 

But if, on the other hand, it is Mr Combe's meaning 
in the above passage, that the Spirit, in its operation on 
the mind, only influences and directs, but does not alter 
its natural constitution, or if it at all alters that constitu- 
tion, does so gradually, and in the same manner as any 
other moral agent, — that, in short, it does not destroy 
the personal identity of the individual, but leaves the 
distinguishing traits of character nearly as it found 
them, — then I would admit that the representation is a 
true one. The Apostles of our Lord were originally 
men of very different characters, — St Peter, ardent, 
hasty, and sanguine, with rather a want of firmness — 
St Thomas, slow and cautious — St John, benevolent, 
affectionate, and modest — St Paul, vehement, and fiery, 
and zealous for what he conceived to be the truth, even 
to slaying. After they were called, and after they had 
received the Holy Ghost, in a measure, and to an 
extent, of which, in the present days of languid faith, we 
have no experience and hardly any conception, — they 
still continued to display the same distinctions of natural 
character as they did in their unregenerated and uncon- 
verted state. We find, in the epistles of St Peter, the 
same ardent and sanguine temperament as he had for- 
merly evinced, but chastened by the remembrance of 
his former weakness, and relying not so much on 
himself, as on his Divine Master. We find in St Paul, 
still as before, the same uncontrollable vehemence and 
fire, bringing all his natural talent, and all his acquired 
human learning, to bear upon the minds of his hearers, 

* It cannot mean those who are actually righteous and sinless, for we 
are elsewhere informed, that " there is none righteous, no not one." 



SCEPTICAL ARGUMENTS. 303 

and evincing powers which induced the inhabitants of 
Lystra to think that the god of eloquence himself had 
descended among them ; while in the writings of St 
John, with no display of learning, and even a compara- 
tive rudeness of phraseology, we see indubitable marks 
of the same kind and benevolent disposition, the same 
warm and affectionate heart, which had procured for 
him the peculiar friendship and love of his Divine 
Master, and pointed him out to be chosen to heal the 
sorrows, and comfort the declining years of the mother 
of our Lord. These characteristics are such as can 
never be mistaken. The individuals remain the same 
individuals still, though, doubtless, the characters of all 
of them were influenced, improved, and altered, as far 
as moral and spiritual influences can alter, in a degree 
greater perhaps than has ever taken place with any other 
individuals on earth. In all this, there is nothing, so far 
as regards the doctrine of the Spirit's influence, at all 
contrary to the view which any rational phrenologist 
would take of the same doctrine.* 

Mr Combe observes, that " it is a common accusation 
against philosophy, that the study of it renders men 
infidels." He has only quoted the half of the saying. 
According to Lord Bacon, a little learning is apt to 
make men infidels, but a higher degree of knowledge 
leads them back again to religion. The most distin- 
guished philosophers of whom modern times can boast, 
have been believers in Christianity ; and while we can 
rank on this side the names of Bacon, and Newton, and 
Locke, and Butler, we can afford to leave to its opponents 

* See on this subject, an Essay on the " Harmony of Phrenology 
with the Scripture doctrine of Conversion," read before the Phrenological 
Society, 27th November, 1823. By George Lyon, Esq. Published in 
the Christian Instructor for December, 1823. 



304 DIVERSITIES OY DOCTRIN'E. 

these oi Hume. Gibbon, and Voltaire. Mr Combe may 

i for himself, in which of these lists he would 
his own name to be inscribed. 

Mr Combe, in his anxiety to ~e: rid of inconvenient 

Scripture doctrines, has resorted to the old see] 
arguments of the alleged diversity of opinions among 
re.:_:o::s se :ts. ;.::.:•: :~ ::.r v;.ri:-.-.s :■-;.;; ;;;^c — i' ■'..:7.::\'.:'. _-; 
in the interpretation of Scripture. u Nothing," he 
observes, " can afford a more convincing proof of the 
necessity of using all the lights in our power, by which 
to ascertain the true meaning, and the soundness of 
our interpretations of it, than the wide diversity of the 
opinions ven the most learned and pious divines 

le."* 

In another passage he remarks, " The diversities of 
doctrine in religion, too, obviously owe their or 
to ignorance of the primitive faculties. The relative 
strength of the faculties differ in different individuals, 
and each person is most alive to objects and views con- 
nected with the powers predominant in himself. He: 
in readii scriptures, one is convinced that they 

establish Calvinism : another, possessing a different com- 
.on of faculties, discovers in them Lutheranism: 
and a third is satisfied that Unitariamsm is the only true 
rpretation," ^cc.f 

I am not at all aware what the faculties can be to 
which Mr Combe here refers, as having this effect in 
altering or modifying our opinions in matters of faith, or 
as affecting our interpretations of Scripture. In passages 
which relate to plain matters, and which are plainly and 
distinctly expressed, the correct interpretation never can 
be a matter of difficulty ; and this never can be affected* 
in the smallest degree, by the relative strength of faculties 
* Constitution of Man, p. 92. coL 1. t Ibid, p. 95, 96. 



DIFFICULTIES OF INTERPRETATION. 305 

in different individuals; and all the most important 
doctrines of Scripture are of this description, and so 
plainly expressed, that he who runs may read. Accord- 
ingly we find, that there is no difference of opinion upon 
any point of real importance — any of the essential 
articles of faith, among any of the Reformed Christian 
Churches. Upon the great fundamental doctrines, of 
the original perfection, the fall, and subsequent depravity 
of man, and the method of salvation opened to us in the 
Gospel, there is not only no material difference, but there 
is no difference whatever between the Calvinistic and 
Lutheran creeds; and all Christians of every class, 
whether of the Reformed Churches abroad, or the 
different denominations and sects among ourselves, are 
entirely agreed upon these material points. They only 
differ in matters of minor concern, not essential to faith, 
or in their systems of church polity and government. 
Only one exception occurs, in the case of the Unitarians, 
who are a mere handful, in comparison with the great 
body of the Christian Churches. It is not fair, there- 
fore, to speak of the wide differences of opinion and 
doctrine, as existing between the different churches, or to 
represent the whole Christian world as at sea, in matters 
of faith, in regard to the great essentials of religion ; 
for, with the single exception above mentioned, they are, 
on all such essential points, perfectly unanimous. 

On the subject of the difficulty of interpreting Scrip- 
ture, Mr Combe produces certain passages from the 
writings of Bishop Jeremy Taylor, of which it is not too 
much to say that they are partial and garbled extracts, 
and that they do not fairly represent Bishop Taylor's 
views. The work referred to is the " Discourse on the 
Liberty of Prophesying." This work is an earnest 
pleading for toleration, but only in things indifferent, or 
in matters not truly essential to the Christian faith. 

2c2 



306 GARBLED QUOTATIONS 

In the first section of his work, Bishop Taylor states 
what he conceives to be " the nature of faith, and that 
its duty is completed in believing the articles of the 
Apostles' creed." In the first paragraph of the section 
from which Mr Combe makes his quotations (vol. vii. 
p. 496) he states, that all those articles of faith which are 
necessary and essential, " are clearly and plainly set 
down in Scripture, and the Gospel is not hid, nisi per- 
euntibus, saith St Paul, and that so manifestly, that no 
man can be ignorant of the foundation of the faith without 
his own apparent fault. And this is acknowledged by all 
wise and good men, and is evident, besides the reason- 
ableness of the thing, in the testimonies of St Austin, 
Jerome, Chrysostom, Fulgentius, &c. And God hath 
done more : for many things which are only profitable 
are also set down so plainly, that, as St Austin says, 
4 Nemo inde haurire non possit, si modo ad hauriendum 
devote ac pie accedat.''* But of such things there is no 
question commenced in Christendom ;f and if there were, 
it cannot but be crime and human interest that are the 
authors of such disputes ; and, therefore, these cannot be 
simple errors, but always heresies, because the principle 
of them is a personal sin." 

Having disposed of those points about which he con- 
ceives there can be no question, Bishop Taylor proceeds 
to mention those which are really of difficult interpreta- 
tion. " But besides those things which are so plainly set 
down, 'some for doctrine^ as St Paul says — that is, for 
articles and foundation of faith ; some for instruction, 
some for reproof some for comfort — that is, in matters 
practical and speculative, of several tempers and consti- 

* Nobody is unable to drink from thence, if be only applies to it 
devotedly and piously. 

t At the time when Bisbop Taylor wrote, there were no congregations 
of Socinians. 



FROM BISHOP TAYLOR. 307 

tutions, — there are innnumerable places containing in 
them great mysteries, but yet either so enwrapped with 
a cloud, or so darkened with umbrages, or heightened 
with expressions, or so covered with allegories and gar- 
ments of rhetoric, so profound in the matter, or so 
altered or made intricate in the manner, in the clothing, 
and in the dressing, that God may seem to have left 
them as trials of our industry, and arguments of our 
imperfections, and incentives to the longings after 
heaven, and the clearest revelations of eternity, and as 
occasions and opportunities of our mutual charity and 
toleration to each other, and humility in ourselves, 
rather than the repositories of faith, and furniture of 
creeds, and articles of belief." 

It is these latter parts of Scripture alone, the darker 
and more mysterious, because less necessary parts, not 
containing any essential article of faith or precept of 
morality, to which Bishop Taylor refers in the 4th, 5th, 
and 6th paragraphs, in the passages quoted by Mr 
Combe. The quotations are, therefore, garbled quota- 
tions, not fairly made, and by the suppression of what I. 
have now quoted, are made to convey a meaning the 
very reverse of that which Bishop Taylor actually held. 
It is impossible here to admit the excuse, that this has 
occurred per incuriam. Mr Combe must have been 
aware of it, even though he had not read the entire 
section ; for the very title of the section shews it plainly. 
The section is entitled, " On the difficulty and uncer- 
tainty of arguments from Scripture in questions not 
simply necessary, not literally determined." Had Mr 
Combe quoted this, or even the running title on the 
margin of the section, namely, " The Scripture dif- 
ficult in unnecessary points," his extracts would 
have borne a totally different meaning.* 

* Since the publication of the first edition of this work, in which the 



It will be seen in the Life of Taylor, by Bishop 
Heber, published in the first volume of his works, that 
his notions of toleration were not only strictly limited to 
matters not essential as points of 'faith, but that, in regard 
to these last, he even argued in favour of the interference 
of the civil magistrate, " to punish whatever he may be 
taught to consider as blasphemy, or open idolatry." This 
is the law of England at the present day, though un- 
doubtedly there is much caution and circumspection to 
be used in putting it in force. 

Taylor was the first writer in modern times who con- 
tended for the principles of toleration ; and as it was his 
object to shew, from the difficulties in the interpretation 
of Scripture in points not essential, grounds or reasons 
for mutual forbearance and charity in regard to such 
points, — in his anxiety to enforce these, he has stretched 
the argument from the difficulties of Scripture to the 
utmost, and even (as is generally the case with eloquent 
writers, when employing their eloquence on a favourite 
topic,) he has a little exaggerated these difficulties. The 
science of biblical criticism has made great advances 
since the days of Taylor, and no one would now be 
warranted to adopt the strong language contained in 
the third section of his " Discourse." 

In regard to the " various readings," the following 
account is given by Mr Hartwell Home in his " Intro- 
duction to the Critical Study and Knowledge of the Holy 
Scriptures," a work of immense labour and research, 
and now considered as a book of established authority. 

unfairness of these quotations , was pointed out, Mr Combe has sent 
forth, as he states in various advertisements, a new impression of ten 
thousand copies of his " People's Edition," in which these garbled and 
unfair quotations remain unaltered, without one word of explanation or 
retraction. 



VARIOUS READINGS. 309 

" Of this formidable mass of various readings, (amount- 
ing, as some say, to thirty, or according to others, an 
hundred and fifty thousand,) which have been collected 
by the diligence of collators, not one-tenth — nay, not 
one-hundredth part, either makes or can make any per- 
ceptible, or, at least, any material alteration in the sense 
of any modern version. They consist almost wholly 
either of palpable errors in transcription, grammatical 
and verbal differences, such as the insertion or omission 
of an article, the substitution of a word for its equivalent, 
and the transposition of a word or two in a sentence. 
Even the few that do change the sense, affect it only in 
passages relating to unimportant historical and geogra- 
phical circumstances, or other collateral matters ; and 
the still smaller number that make any alteration on 
things of consequence, do not, on that account, place us 
in any absolute uncertainty. For either the true reading 
may be discovered by collating the other manuscripts, 
versions, and quotations found in the works of the 
ancients ; or should these fail to give us the requisite 
information, we are enabled to explain the doctrine in 
question from other undisputed passages of holy writ. 
This observation particularly applies to the doctrines of 
the divinity of Jesus Christ, and of the Trinity, which 
some persons of late years have attempted to expunge 
from the New Testament, because a few controverted 
passages have been cited in proof of them; but these 
doctrines are written as with a sunbeam in other parts 
of the New Testament. The very worst manuscript 
extant would not pervert one article of our faith^or destroy 
one moral precept.* All the omissions of the ancient 
manuscripts put together could not countenance the 
omission of one essential doctrine of the Gospel, relating 

* To this extent, it will be seen, Bishop Taylor entirely accords with 
what is stated by Mr Home. 



310 VARIOUS READINGS. 

either to faith or morals ; and all the additions counte- 
nanced by the whole mass of manuscripts already collated, 
do not introduce a single point essential either to faith 
or manners, beyond what may be found in the Com- 
plutensian or Elzevir editions. And though for beauty, 
emphasis, and critical perfection of the letter of the New 
Testament, a new edition, formed on Griesbach's plan, 
is desirable ; yet, from such an one infidelity can expect 
no help — false doctrine no support — and even true 
religion no accession to its excellence, as indeed it needs 
none. The general uniformity, therefore, of the manu- 
scripts of the New Testament, which are dispersed 
through all the countries in the known world, and in so 
great a variety of languages, is truly astonishing, and 
demonstrates both the veneration in which the Scriptures 
have uniformly been held, and the singular care which 
was taken in transcribing them ; and so far are the 
various readings contained in these manuscripts from 
being hostile to the uncorrupted preservation of the 
books of the New Testament, (as some sceptics have 
boldly affirmed, and some timid Christians have appre- 
hended,) that they afford us, on the contrary, an 
additional and most convincing proof that they exist at 
present, in all essential points, precisely the same as 
they were when they left the hands of their authors."* 

Mr Combe has quoted, as an instance of the insuffi- 
ciency of mere theological knowledge to preserve from 
practical error without the aid of science, the atrocities 
committed in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries in the 
prosecution of witches. This is a subject of itself suffi- 
ciently lamentable, as shewing the proneness of mankind 
to error and superstition ; and certainly Mr Combe has 

* Home's Introduction to the Critical Study and Knowledge of the 
Holy Scriptures. 2d edition, vol. i. p. 129. 



TRIALS OF WITCHES. 311 

availed himself of it to the utmost as a weapon of attack 
against the teachers of religion. In regard to this, 
it may be observed, that the error was certainly not 
imputable to the clergy alone — they only erred in com- 
mon with the whole body of the people. The error, too, 
did not arise from any ambiguity or difficulty in the 
interpretation of Scripture, but from gross superstition 
acting on the fears and prejudices of an ignorant people. 
Nor was the evil cured by philosophy, or any new 
discoveries in science, but by the gradual diffusion of 
intelligence through the mass of society. It was neither 
Galileo, nor Copernicus, nor Kepler, nor Newton, 
nor any disciple of any philosophical school, who inter- 
fered by their remonstrances to put a stop to the burning 
of witches; it was to the good sense of our judges and 
lawyers, — men not generally considered as the most 
enlarged in their views — men immersed in the techni- 
calities of their profession, and, for the most part, lying 
under the trammels of custom and precedent, — that we 
owed our deliverance from this crying evil. 

Mr Combe says, that this abomination continued for 
a century after the Reformation, and after the Bible 
had been freely put into the hands of the people ; and 
hence he argues against the sufficiency of the Bible to 
preserve from error without the aid of science. He 
totally forgets, or rather he chooses in th instance t 
forget, the very slow progress which truth, even when 
most clearly and distinctly revealed, makes its way to 
any considerable or useful extent among the masses of 
society, or even among those who stand highest in 
learning and philosophy. Mr Combe is the first to see 
and lament this, when the question regards the progress 
of his own favourite science, but he makes no allowance 
for it in regard to the dissemination of Christian prin- 
ciples, in an age of comparatively far greater ignorance. 



312 WHETHER SCIENCE AIDS 

Upon the whole, I would say. that the fact of the 
extinction of trials for witchcraft within a century after 
the Reformation, is one of the most decisive proofs 
that could be adduced, of the salutary effect which the 
Reformation has produced in removing the clouds of 
superstition and error. 

But even granting that science had some share in 
putting an end to the belief in witchcraft, this can 
hardly be adduced as an instance of the aids which 
science can afford to religion, for I am not aware of 
any other example of a similar kind, where this praise 
can be fairly claimed. Has science improved the con- 
dition of the female sex ? Has science put an end to 
slavery ? Has science raised our charitable institutions ? 
It has done none of these things, which are all the result 
of a general improvement in the character of the people 
produced by Christianity. 

Air Combe takes hold of every occasion he can to 
lower, if he cannot altogether deny, the influence of 
Christianity in producing moral improvement. In the 
title to this chapter he states. ;; History demonstrates 
that Christianity, while unaided by arts and science, 
was corrupted itself, and had little influence in improving 
the human race." From this, he obviously leaves it to 
be inferred, that the whole, or the greater part, of the 
improvement which has taken place in modern times, is 
to be attributed to the arts and to science, and not to 
Christianity. This is a gross misrepresentation. Chris- 
tianity was corrupted, no doubt, by the mixture of 
heathen rites and heathen philosophy in the earlier 
centuries or our era, and latterly, by the interested 
inventions of a worldly and ambitious priesthood: but 
what did either art or science do towards the removal 
of these corruptions ? It is quite absurd to attribute the 



OR IS AIDED BY CHRISTIANITY. 313 

Reformation to science. The Reformation was begun, 
carried on, and brought to its completion, without the 
least aid from science, by a careful study, and accurate 
interpretation of the unadulterated word of God, and 
by no other means. At the time when the Reformation 
took place, science was still at a very low ebb ; and 
instead of attributing the Reformation to science, the 
true state of the matter unquestionably is, that the vast 
improvements in science, which have taken place within 
the last three centuries, have been mainly attributable 
to the Reformation, and to the general improvement in 
mental and intellectual culture, which Christianity has 
diffused wherever it has been taught in its purity. It 
will be observed, that even in countries where the 
Roman Catholic errors still prevail, the Reformation 
has not been altogether without some indirect influence, 
by the reflex light, which all the efforts of a bigoted 
priesthood have not been able entirely to shut out, 
and, therefore, science has not been altogether excluded 
from these countries ; but still the reformed countries 
have been by far the most distinguished for scientific 
discovery, and every species of improvement in art. 

The truth undoubtedly is, that wherever pure Chris- 
tianity has been effectually taught, the arts and sciences, 
and every species of knowledge, and every kind of moral 
and intellectual improvement, have invariably spread in 
its train. It is in Christian countries, and in them alone, 
that these have permanently flourished, or are now 
making any progress ; and among Christian countries 
they have flourished most, and produced most abundant 
fruit in those where the churches have been most 
thoroughly reformed. If, then, we are to judge in this 
case by ordinary rules, what conclusion can we draw 
but this, that it is Christianity which has improved the 
moral and intellectual character of the people, wherever 
2 D 



314 ON THE EFFICACY OF PRAYER. 

it has been fairly established, and that from this improved 
intellectual state have arisen all our boasted improve- 
ments in science. This I have no hesitation in affirming 
to be the true state of the connection between science 
and Scripture. I defy Mr Combe to point out any 
material or effectual aid which science has ever afforded 
to the cause of Revelation ; but, on the other hand, for 
the last three hundred years, science has been advancing 
with the most rapid strides in those countries, and in 
those only, where Christianity has produced its salutary 
and ennobling effects on the mind and character of the 
people. Can there be any doubt here as to which is the 
true fountain of light, and the real and originating cause 
of intellectual and moral improvement ? 

The next subject adverted to by Mr Combe is that of 
Prayer. He mentions, that " an objection has been 
stated against the doctrine of the Divine Government of 
the world by established laws, that it is inconsistent with 
belief in the efficacy of prayer. This objection, he 
observes, has been often urged and answered ; indeed, it 
has been deliberately settled by the Church of Scotland 
itself in harmony with the vieius advocated in this treatise ;" 
and then he proceeds to mention the case of the Rev. 
William Leechman, D.D. Professor of Divinity in 
Glasgow, who, he states, was prosecuted for an alleged 
heresy on the subject of prayer, before the Presbytery 
of Glasgow, in the year 1744, but afterwards acquitted 
by the Synod and General Assembly. On examining 
the documents connected with this case, as they appear 
in the printed acts of the General Assembly, it will be 
found that the above statements are entirely erroneous. 
The Church of Scotland has never settled the question 
in the manner stated by Mr Combe. Even though the 
General Assembly had pronounced an opinion on the 



CASE OF DR LEECHMAN. 315 

question, (which they never did,) they have no power to 
bind the Church in this, or any other matter of faith. 
The province of the General Assembly is confined strictly 
to matters of discipline and ecclesiastical polity. The 
doctrine of the Church in regard to prayer is stated in 
her standards — in the Confession of Faith and the 
Larger and Shorter Catechisms. To the doctrine, as 
there stated, every member of the Church is bound to 
conform, and no opinion has ever been sanctioned by 
the Church contrary to what is there set down. 

The true state of Dr Leechman's case was as follows : 
He certainly did publish a sermon, containing the 
passage quoted by Mr Combe, the substance of which 
is to this purpose, that prayer has no effect except by its 
reflex influence upon the mind of the suppliant, and 
accordingly that " the true efficacy of prayer does not lie 
in the mere asking, but in its being the means of pro- 
ducing that frame of mind which qualifies us to receive." 

It will be seen from the acts of Assembly, (and Mr 
Combe, when he quoted the case, ought to have known,) 
that when the subject came before the Assembly, Dr 
Leechman made such explanations and admissions to 
the committee to whom the matter was referred, (and 
which, it is believed, he had previously done to the com- 
mittee of the Synod,) as to remove, in a great measure, 
the objections stated by the Presbytery. The ground of 
the Presbytery's complaint was not so much what Dr 
Leechman had said, as what he did not say ; and parti- 
cularly, that he had avoided all reference to the necessity 
and influence of the intercession of Christ, and to his 
mediation, — all of which, when he found the matter 
becoming serious, he expressly admitted. * 

* The following is an extract from the paper of explanations given in 
by the Professor to the Assembly's Committee : — " One main occasion 
of ublishing this sermon on prayer, was, to prevent the bad effects of a 



316 DR leechman's explanations. 

It will be observed from the documents referred to* 
1st, That the objection taken by the Presbytery of 

late pamphlet, which represents prayer as absurd and unreasonable, nay, 
as an impious and blasphemous practice ; for that wicked pamphlet being 
spread in the part of the country where I live, and having had obser- 
vable bad influence upon young and unthinking minds, I was persuaded 
by some friends, who are zealous for the interests of religion, to publish 
this sermon, (which they had occasionally heard me preach,) as a proper 
antidote to the poison of it. As the pamphlet which occasioned the 
publication of this sermon did attack only one part of prayer, namely, 
offering up our desires to God, but did not attack the other part of it, 
namely, the offering them up in the name of Christ, the discourse is 
therefore mainly limited to the explication and vindication of this first 
part of prayer, without explaining and vindicating the second part of it, 
which I considered as a separate, or at least as a different branch of the 
same subject ; so the omissions complained of in that performance did 
not proceed from any disregard of those important and fundamental parts- 
of Christianity, the offering up of our desires to God in the name of 
Christ, and the merits and satisfaction of the Mediator as the only 
grounds of our acceptance with God, and of our obtaining the pardon of 
sin ; but from a persuasion that it is necessary to convince men of the 
reasonableness of offering up their desires to God, before you can con- 
vince them that it is a reasonable thing to offer them up in the name of 
Christ : and from a persuasion that it might be of some use, (through 
the Divine blessing,) to endeavour to do the first of these, at the time 
when, and in the place of the country where I attempted it. 

" If, therefore, any passages of this sermon have been so incautiously 
expressed, as naturally to lead any one to think (which I am not yet 
convinced they are,) that I meant to assert that the necessity of the 
Christian religion itself is superseded by the light of nature, or that the 
light of nature is sufficient to give that knowledge of God and his will 
which is necessary to salvation — that praying in the name of Christ is- 
not the duty of Christians, or a foreign or superfluous circumstance — or 
that the merits and propitiation of Jesus Christ are not the only grounds 
of a sinner's acceptance with God, and of his obtaining the forgiveness 
of sins, and that the only end of punishment is the reformation of the 
offender, — I honestly declare that I had no such intention in these 
passages, &c. ; and as I have already subscribed the Confession of 
Faith, where these doctrines are taught in the strongest manner, as the 
confession of my faith, I am still willing to do the same again." 

The report and overture of the Committee were to the effect, " That 
the Professor has given abundant satisfaction concerning the orthodoxy 
of his sentiments, and that there is no ground or occasion for any farther 
trial of the said Professor in respect of that sermon." 



DECISION OF THE ASSEMBLY. 317 

Glasgow was not that alleged by Mr Combe, namely, 
that the doctrines stated by Dr Leechman were heretical ; 
they did not object to what he had said, (although some 
parts of what he said were very objectionable,) but to 
what he had not said ; he was charged with a sin of 
omission, not of commission. And it will be particularly 
observed, that both the Committee and the Assembly 
carefully guard against its being supposed that they had 
considered or approved of the sermon generally. 

2d, That Dr Leechman's statement bears that he had 
printed and published the sermon, not as a complete 
account of the doctrine of prayer, but for the purpose of 
meeting and answering an infidel objection on the Deist's 
own principles. 

3d, Mr Combe says the objection has been "delibe- 
rately settled by the Church of Scotland itself in harmony 
with the views contained in this treatise." This has 
been shewn not to be the fact. The General Assembly 
is not the Church of Scotland, and therefore their deci- 
sion could not settle the question ; but in point of fact, 
they gave no decision upon it at all. They acquitted 
Dr Leechman, because he conceded and admitted all the 
points in respect of which any objection had been stated. 
The doctrines of the Church are to be found in her 
Confession of Faith, and the views of prayer there stated 

The decision of the Assembly is as follows : — " The General Assem- 
bly, having heard the said report and overture, did, without a vote, agree 
to approve thereof, with this explanation, that by the expressions in the 
narrative, namely, 'and particularly the passages so excepted against,' 
no more was intended by the Committee, (as by several members thereof 
was declared,) nor is intended or meant by this Assembly, in approving 
their overture above inserted, than that the Committee, and thereafter 
the Assembly, considered the passages in the said sermon that had been 
remarked upon by the Presbytery of Glasgow, and another passage taken 
notice of by some members of the Committee of Assembly ; but not that 
either the Committee or Assembly had read over or considered the 
whole of that sermon," &c. 

2d2 



318 DOCTRINE OF THE CHURCH ON PRAYER. 

will not be found to be " in harmony" with those con- 
tained in Mr Combe's treatise. 

4th, At the same time, there is no doubt that Dr 
Leechman's views of prayer are essentially erroneous 
and defective. There appears to have been a disposi- 
tion in the Assembly to screen him, and therefore they 
accepted his explanation. But certainly no such deci- 
sion would have been pronounced in the purest periods 
of the Church. 

Mr Combe says, that since this decision, the views 
delivered by Professor Leechman have been unhesita- 
tingly taught by Scottish divines. If it is intended 
here to intimate that this is the doctrine usually taught 
by our divines, it is a misrepresentation. It is not 
true. It appears that Mr Combe has been seeking 
for authorities, and the only one he is able to produce 
out of hundreds of sermons by Scottish divines, on the 
subject of prayer, is a quotation from a sermon of Dr 
Blair, who certainly has never been regarded as an 
authority in theological questions. If he could have 
found another instance to the same purpose, he would 
doubtless have quoted it, but it may be safely said that 
none such is to be found. As to the quotation from 
Lord Karnes, it shews how hard he is pushed, when he 
refers to the opinion of a layman of known latitudinarian 
principles. But Mr Combe had the best reason to be 
fully aware, that this is not the doctrine taught by our 
most distinguished divines. An article appears in the 
Phrenological Journal for June, 1832, which Mr Combe 
could not fail to have seen, in which particular notice is 
taken of a sermon of Dr Chalmers on the subject of 
prayer, containing a view of the subject directly opposed 
to that advocated by Mr Combe. The writer of that 
article attempts to refute Dr Chalmers's theory; but the 
attempt only shews that he neither understood the 



dr Gordon's views. 319 

theory itself, nor those laws of philosophical investigation 
which must for ever limit our inquiries on subjects of 
this nature. The doctrine of the Church, as understood 
and taught by Scottish divines, may be found stated in 
Dr Gordon's two Sermons on Daniel's Prayer, being 
the seventeenth and eighteenth sermons in his printed 
volume, and in Dr Chalmers' Treatise on Natural 
Theology, book v. chap. 3, where he treats of the 
rationale, or philosophy of prayer, and of a special 
providence. 

Dr Gordon's general idea is, that prayer is to be 
regarded as one, and one of the most important, of those 
secondary agencies which God employs to bring about 
the events of providence. The Jews were to be restored 
to their own land, but not only was it determined in the 
councils of heaven that they were to be so restored, but 
that they were eagerly to desire this event — that their 
hearts were to be turned to God, and that they were to 
pray to him for their restoration, and that when they so 
prayed he would hear them. The words of the Prophet 
Jeremiah, in reference to this, are express : " Thus saith 
the Lord, that after seventy years be accomplished at 
Babylon, I will visit you, and perform my good word 
towards you, in causing you to return to this place. 
Then shall ye call on me, and ye shall go and pray unto 
me, and I will hearken unto you ; and ye shall seek me 
and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your 
heart" The promise was conditional, and one of the 
conditions was, that the event so much desired was to 
be the object of earnest prayer and supplication. The 
Jews were to be restored, — that was decreed ; but it was 
also decreed that their prayers, and particularly the 
prayer of Daniel, were to be among the means of their 
restoration. 

I cannot state here the whole of Dr Gordon's 



320 dr Gordon's views of prayer. 

reasoning on this subject. To understand it thoroughly, 
the whole sermons should be attentively read ; but the 
general idea will appear in what follows : — " Throughout 
the whole period of that protracted captivity, he (Daniel) 
had been honoured to vindicate the power, and assert 
the supremacy of the Lord God of Israel ; by the wisdom 
of his counsels and the weight of his personal character, 
he had paved the way for that decision, in favour of the 
people of God, to which the King of Persia was soon to 
be brought ; and the whole business of his active and 
most laborious life was made to bear on the interests and 
the liberation of his afflicted brethren ; and if God had 
thus assigned to the outward actions of his servant an 
important place in carrying into effect his thoughts of 
peace towards his penitent people, is it conceivable that 
he had no place in that scheme to assign to the holy and 
spiritual efforts of the same servant ? or that the aspira- 
tions of a sanctified spirit, the travailing of a soul intent 
upon the accomplishment of the divine will, and the 
manifestations of the divine glory, should be less efficient 
or less essential in the execution of the divine councils, 
than the outward and ordinary agency of human 
actions ? The whole tenor, and the most explicit 
declarations of Scripture, stand opposed to such a 
supposition ; nor can I understand how a devout mind 
should have any difficulty in conceiving that it must be 
so. The agency of prayer is indeed a less obvious and 
palpable thing than that outward co-operation whereby 
mankind are rendered subservient to the accomplish- 
ment of the divine purposes. But is it not an agency 
of an unspeakably loftier character ? Is it not the co- 
operation of an immortal spirit, bearing the impress of 
the divine image, and at the moment acting in unison 
with the divine will ? Is it not befitting the character 
of God to set upon that co-operation a special mark of 



t>R CHALMERS' VIEWS. 321 

his holy approbation, by assigning to it a more elevated 
place among the secondary causes which he is pleased to 
employ ? And must there not be provision made, there- 
fore, in the general principles of his administration, for 
fulfilling the special promise of his word, ' The Lord is 
nigh to all that call upon him, to all that call upon him 
in truth ?' " 

Dr Chalmers takes a view nearly similar. His 
argument is long, and I must be extremely short in my 
quotations ; but the following, I think, will sufficiently 
shew the general scope of his doctrine : 

" Every thing has its philosophy, which is neither 
more nor less than the rationale, or the true state of that 
thing. It may perhaps be felt as rather an adventurous 
expression, when we speak of the philosophy of prayer ; 
nevertheless, it is a subject which, like every other 
possible object of contemplation, admits of academic 
treatment. And 

" First of all then, let it be observed, that the doctrine 
of the efficacy of prayer but introduces a new sequence 
to the notice of the mind ; whereas it seems to be 
quarreled with by philosophy, on the ground that it 
disturbs and distempers the regularity of all sequences. 
It may add another law of nature to those which have 
been formerly observed ; but this, surely, may be done 
without invading on the constancy of nature. The 
general truth may be preserved, that the same result 
always follows in the same circumstances, although it 
should be discovered that prayer is one of those influential 
circumstances by which the result is liable to be modified. 
The law of magnetism does not repeal, it does not even 
interrupt the law of gravitation, although the loadstone 
should keep the iron weight that is suspended beneath it 
from falling to the ground. There is still a certain and 
invariable effect produced in this instance by the action 



322 

of two forces, each of which is certain and invariable. 
There is nothing in this to disturb the actual mechanism 
of nature, but only to complicate it. Nature, after 
this discovery, may appear a more complex, but not a 
more capricious mechanism than before. It may dis- 
close to observation a new train of sequences, which 
must interfere occasionally with other trains, when it 
will modify, but in no way derange, the workings of a 
sure and regular economy. What, then, if prayer, and 
the fulfilment of prayer, are but the two terms of a 
sequence, having the effect, like every other effect, to 
complicate the processes of nature, but not to bring 
them under the misrule of a fitful and wayward con- 
tingency, insomuch that the doctrine of the efficacy of 
prayer may be no more in conflict than the doctrine of 
the composition of forces with the steadfastness of nature, 
and the regularities of a harmonious universe ?" 

This is the leading idea, which Dr Chalmers follows 
out to all its consequences, stating and meeting all the 
objections which are likely to occur to a philosophical 
mind. Into this disquisition I cannot follow him here, 
but must refer the reader to the work itself, which 
deserves and will repay an attentive perusal. 

These quotations will sufficiently shew that the doctrine 
of prayer, as taught by our most distinguished divines, 
is not in unison with the views of Mr Combe. 

There are, no doubt, limitations to the doctrine. We 
know that in this world all events proceed apparently 
by invariable laws ; and a rational believer never asks in 
prayer, that any of these laws should be suspended on 
his account. He never expects to obtain by prayer 
alone, that which he knows is made dependent on his 
own exertions, but after using these exertions, he is 
justified in petitioning that they may be accompanied 
with a blessing, and made effectual towards obtaining 



LIMITATIONS TO THE DOCTRINE. 323 

the object of his desires. Farther, in every thing relating 
to external events, the true believer will accompany all 
his petitions with this reservation, that they be granted 
only so far as may be consistent with the Divine will. 
But there is one class of petitions in regard to which no 
reservation is necessary, because we know beforehand 
that they are conformable to the Divine will. Such are 
the petitions in the Lord's Prayer, all of which we know 
to be such as God has declared his willingness to grant, 
although he may not grant them to us unless we earnestly 
and faithfully pray for them. Such are in general all 
our petitions for the influences and assistance of the 
Divine Spirit to produce in us an amendment of heart 
and life. In regard to these, the most express assurances 
are given, that, if we ask them, we shall not ask them in 
vain : — ■ " Ask, and it shall be given you ; seek, and ye 
shall find ; knock, and it shall be opened unto you : for 
every one that asketh, receiveth ; and he that seeketh, 
findeth ; and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened."* 

In regard to that illumination of mind, which is of 
the Spirit, and which is necessary to understand the 
truths of the Gospel, it is declared, — " If any of you 
lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men 
liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. 
But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering : for he that 
wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind 
and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall 
receive any thing of the Lord."f 

And, again, it is said,—" If ye, being evil, know how 
to o-ive good gifts to your children, how much more shall 
your Father which is in heaven give good things to them 
that ask him"% 

In regard to spiritual blessings and divine influences, 

* Matt. vii. 7, 8. t James, i. 5, 7. X Matt. vii. 11, 



324 PRAYER FOR SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS. 

it seems to be according to the ordinary procedure of 
God, that they are granted to those, and to those only, 
who ask them in prayer. It is the will of God, gene- 
rally, that they should be granted to all, but it is also 
his will, that they should be asked for, earnestly desired, 
fervently prayed for. There may be, and there cer- 
tainly is, in the first motions of this desire leading to 
prayer and earnest petition, a kind and merciful inter- 
' position of divine influence inclining and disposing us 
to make such petitions ; but this does not hinder, that 
the petition itself is necessary as in part a procuring 
cause of that full measure of spiritual influence which is 
required and finally granted to the believer. Even in 
the case of St Paul, whose conversion was the effect 
of a direct miracle, he fasted and prayed in darkness 
for three days, before Ananias was authorized to 
baptize him, in token of his having received the Holy 
Ghost. 

The true phrenological view of prayer would seem to 
be the following : Three faculties have been bestowed 
on man, which prompt him to worship a Supreme 
Being, and to pour out his desires to him in prayer. 
Veneration and Wonder directly dispose us to this, 
while Hope leads to the expectation and belief that our 
prayers will not be altogether ineffectual, but that if 
they are put up in a manner agreeable to the divine 
will, they may be favourably heard and answered. That 
these are the legitimate promptings of the feelings now 
mentioned seems evident from this, that the higher and 
more perfect the character becomes, the more intense is 
the desire of the individual to engage in such acts of 
worship, and to pour out his petitions to God in prayer. 
It thus appears that this disposition to pray, and to 
expect an answer to prayer, is " not a factitious feeling," 
(as Mr Combe expresses it in reference to another 



PHRENOLOGICAL VIEW OF PRAYER. 325 

subject) " or a mere exuberance of an idle and luxuriant 
imagination, but is the result of certain primitive 
faculties of the mind, which owe at once their existence 
and their functions to the Creator." * 

On taking a survey of the other faculties and feelings 
of the human mind, we may observe, that for all of them 
there are objects and circumstances prepared in the 
external world, which exactly meet their several wants 
and desires. We have feelings of love and attachment, 
and fellow beings exist, who are the objects of these 
feelings. We have a desire of offspring, and a love of 
the young and tender of our species, and children exist 
to gratify these. We have a feeling and a love of music, 
and we have the means of producing harmony and 
melody. We have a sense of grandeur and beauty, and 
the world is full of objects in which these qualities are 
conspicuous. For every faculty there is an object, and 
we find preparation made to gratify, in fitting time and 
manner, every expectation. And is there to be only one 
exception to this rule ? Is this disposition to prayer, and 
the expectation of an answer to prayer, the only case 
where such feelings and expectations are to be deceived 
and disappointed ? Why have we been prompted to 
pour out our desires to God, and to expect that he will 
hear and answer us, if all this is a mere delusion ? And 
a delusion it undoubtedly is, unless there is a real answer 
to prayer, — a putting up of a petition to an intelligent 
hearer on the one side, and a granting of that petition 
on the other. It is undoubtedly a delusion, if the only 
effect of prayer begins and ends in its reflex influence 
upon our own minds. It is as if we were prompted 
or commanded to exert our bodily force to lift an 
object which is immoveable, or which it is altogether 
beyond our limited strength to stir from its place, and 

* Combe's System of Phrenology. Second Edition, p. 208. 
2 E 



326 PHRENOLOGICAL VIEW OF PRAYER. 

where the only effect of our exertions would be the 
improvement and strengthening of our own muscular 
frame. We cannot believe that the Author of nature 
would so deceive us, or implant in us desires and ex- 
pectations which are never to be gratified. Does not 
this afford a strong argument, that there is more in 
prayer, and in the effect of prayer, than its mere reflex 
influence upon our own minds ? and that as our natural 
feelings, implanted by God, lead us to expect that he 
will hear and answer us, hence it must be true that he 
will, when he sees fit, actually hear and vouchsafe an 
answer ? Of course such answer may not always be the 
granting of the specific request made by us at the time. 
All that is necessary, and all that is contended for is, 
that there may be a real hearing, and a real answer. 

When, in addition to this argument from natural 
feeling, we take into view the confirmation afforded by 
the express injunctions of Scripture to " make our 
requests known unto God," and the numerous express 
declarations, that if we pray in faith he will send us 
an answer in peace, there seems nothing awanting to 
establish the point on grounds that cannot be shaken. 

It signifies nothing that we are unable to shew how 
the answer is sent, consistently with our belief of the 
constancy of the laws of nature. Into that question it 
must for ever be needless for us to inquire, otherwise 
than hypothetically, as its solution depends upon ele- 
ments that lie beyond the reach of our limited faculties. 
Surely, if we believe that there exists a God, the creator 
and ruler of the universe, it requires no additional 
stretch of faith to admit that his resources must extend 
to many things far above our most exalted conceptions, 
and which our imperfect powers of combination are 
altogether incompetent to fathom. I, therefore, enter 
into no reasoning on this part of the subject. Our 



INFLUENCE OF THE SPIRIT. 327 

belief here does not rest upon reasoning, but upon 
feeling ; and any argument that can be adduced against 
it, mounting as it must do to a sphere beyond the reach 
of our intellect, and attempting no less than to ascend 
to the very throne of Omnipotence, is not philosophy, it 
is the acme of gross and arrogant presumption. 

In regard to the influence of the Spirit, it is no objec- 
tion to its reality that some persons are not conscious of 
its operation in their own particular case ; neither is it 
an objection that some pious, but mistaken individuals 
have attributed to its operation certain feelings which 
are clearly the result of physical causes affecting their 
bodily organs. We are not to be moved by the 
incredulity of one class of persons, or the mistakes of 
another class, to reject what is unquestionably true, what 
is clearly and unequivocally declared to be true in the 
Scriptures, and what many thousands have attained the 
full assurance of being verified in their own personal 
experience. As to the possibility of the thing, we have 
the express opinion of a late distinguished antagonist of 
revelation, that our inability to explain the manner in 
which it is effected is no just objection against it. Lord 
Bolingbroke observes, that " an extraordinary action of 
God upon the human mind is not more inconceivable 
than the ordinary action of mind on body, or body on 
mind, and that it is impertinent to deny the existence of 
any phenomenon merely because we cannot account for 
it."* 

In regard to the Spirit's influence, it may be remarked, 
that it is not to be expected to manifest itself by any 
outward throes or convulsions of the body, or any 
sensible internal motions of natural feeling. It is seen 
only in its effects upon the life and conversation. St 
John informs us how we should know that we have 
* Bolingbroke's Works, vol. ii. p. 468, 4th edition. 



328 PHRENOLOGY AFFECTS 

received the gift : — " Hereby we do know that we know 
him, (Jesus Christ,) if we keep his commandments. 
He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his com- 
mandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But 
whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of 
God perfected ; hereby know we that we are in hi?n." * 
If, then, we would know and be assured that we have in 
reality received the true influence of the Spirit, let us 
examine ourselves, whether we do, or anxiously endea- 
vour to do, the will of God, and to keep his command- 
ments. If our consciences answer us that we do, happy 
are we. There may be many lapses and shortcomings, 
but if we still hold fast the faith, and earnestly endeavour 
after new obedience, we shall not fail in the end to obtain 
our reward. 

In regard to all points connected with revelation, I 
may now remark, once for all, that there is nothing 
whatever in Phrenology, more than any other system of 
the human faculties, that either affords an objection to 
any of the conclusions to which w r e arrive on the 
ordinary principles of reasoning, or which furnishes any 
great additional light to guide us to a right conclusion 
respecting them. It is a perfect delusion to suppose, as 
Mr Combe seems to do, that this new science is to pro- 
duce a total revolution in our theological creeds, and 
place the Bible and its doctrines in an entirely new light. 
There is no truth or feasibility in such a supposition. 
Those parts of Scripture, which were before clear and 
indisputable, remain clear and indisputable still, and 
derive no additional clearness from phrenological illus- 
tration ; and, on the other hand, there is no fact 
revealed by Phrenology which is at all at variance with 
any of those points. Mr Combe admits this with regard 
* 1 John, ii. 3—5, 



NO SCRIPTURE DOCTRINE. 329 

to the moral precepts. I have endeavoured to shew 
that the same is the case with several of the doctrinal 
parts of Scripture. It is perhaps possible, that when 
Phrenology has been more fully established as a science, 
it may throw more light upon some of those dark and 
obscure parts of Scripture which Bishop Taylor speaks 
of, which appear at present covered with clouds and 
umbrages ; but these, as he observes, occur only in 
matters of inferior moment, not necessary to be known 
as points of faith or practice. In regard to such points 
as we have been now considering, the doctrines respec- 
ting prayer and a special Providence, it may be safely 
averred, that Phrenology affords no data whatever 
affecting in the smallest degree our reasonings respecting 
them. The two subjects never once came into contact 
with one another. Phrenology leaves all such questions 
where it found them, and has no more to do with their 
right solution, than the principles of mathematical calcu- 
lation, or the doctrine of the solar system. 

In regard to such a point as the operation of spiritual 
influences upon the mind, we know nothing, and never 
can know any thing, except what is revealed in Scrip- 
ture, or verified in our own experience. It affords no 
aid to explain this operation, when we are told, that the 
different faculties and feelings of which we are conscious, 
are connected with and dependent for their manifesta- 
tion upon certan cerebral organs. After we are informed 
of this, we are just as far as ever from understanding 
how the mind, or the mental faculties, or the material 
organs of these faculties, are operated on by spiritual 
influence. It is a subject totally out of the sphere of 
reason, and it is useless for us to speculate upon or to 
form any theory with regard to it. We have no data 
for such speculations, nor any means either of verifying 
or disproving anv such theory. Upon such subjects as 
2 e 2 



330 ON CRIMINAL LEGISLATION. 

these, it is the only safe and the only philosophical 
course, to adopt the advice of Lord Bacon, not to " mix 
divine things with human," but to " give unto faith that 
which unto faith belongeth." 



CHAPTER XII. 

ON CRIMINAL LEGISLATION. 

I shall now make a few remarks on Mr Combe's 
system of criminal discipline, in regard to which he 
seems to me to have erred as much as in any other part 
of his speculations. And here I must confess myself 
utterly unable to imagine of what stuff Mr Combe's 
feelings of justice are composed, when he can see the 
most perfect justice in the case of a child, who has 
inadvertently swallowed arsenic, perishing in the most 
excruciating tortures, and at the same time denies the 
justice of inflicting retributive punishment on an atro- 
cious criminal. Mr Combe's views upon this subject 
are such as to confound utterly all our notions of right 
and wrong, justice and injustice. According to him, 
the greatest criminals are to be regarded as the least. 
Crime, with him, is merely a misfortune, and criminals 
to be looked upon as objects of compassion, and only as 
objects of compassion. It follows, that those who com- 
mit the greatest crimes, being the most unfortunate, are 
entitled to our compassion in the greatest degree. Accor- 
dingly, Mr Combe seems to regard all criminals what- 
soever, and particularly those who are guilty of the most 
atrocious offences, with a tender, and almost a fatherly 
affection, and he reserves his whole indignation for mere 
errors in judgment; for our divines, who, in place of 
teaching Phrenology from the pulpit, prefer preaching 



MR COMBE'S VIEW OF JUSTICE. 831 

the Gospel; and for all those who neglect, or disobey, or 
speak lightly of, the natural laws. The conclusion of the 
whole is this, that there is to be no punishment inflicted, 
as punishment, in the case of any crime whatsoever ; and 
that all we are to do, even in the worst cases, is to take 
up the offenders, put them into penitentiaries, that is to 
say, comfortable houses, where they will be sheltered, fed, 
and preserved in safety, and properly instructed in their 
duty, all at the public expense, and then sent abroad 
again into society to practise the lessons they have so 
learned. " Why this is hire and salary," and not 
punishment. Many may be tempted to commit crimes, 
if this is to be the mode of dealing with criminals. 

The plan, I admit, might perhaps be tried by way of 
experiment, if it were at all practicable ; and perhaps in 
some other country, or in some other society than that of 
Britain, or in some other planet than this earth, it may 
be practicable. But in this country, at the present time, 
taking the people as they are, with their present develop- 
ment, and in the present state of improvement of their 
faculties, it is altogether impossible that such a system 
can be executed with any hope of tolerable success ; and 
if he would only apply his own principles consistently 
throughout, there is no one that should be more fully 
satisfied than Mr Combe that this is the case. 

Mr Combe observes, " The leading fact which arrests 
our attention in this inquiry, is, that every crime pro- 
ceeds from an abuse of some faculty or other; and the 
question immediately arises, Whence originates the 
tendency to abuse ? Phrenology enables us to answer, 
From three sources ; first, From particular organs being 
too large and spontaneously active; secondly, From great 
excitement produced by external causes ; or, thirdly, 
From ignorance of what are uses or what are abuses of 
the faculties." 



332 MR combe's views of crime. 

All these causes, Mr Combe states, subsist indepen- 
dently of the will of the offender. This is perhaps not 
entirely true of any of these causes. It is not necessary 
to resort to Phrenology, to prove that a man has not 
the choice of his own original disposition and character. 
But if the organ of any particular propensity is too 
powerful, it may be asked, has it not been indulged and 
cherished in a culpable manner, before it came into this 
state of predominance and over activity ? Again, the 
circumstances of external excitement which lead to 
crime, are generally of our own seeking. If evil example 
is alleged, has not evil company been sought rather than 
avoided ? Had not the individual at first voluntarily 
chosen such society, he would not have been exposed to 
the contagion of their evil communications. If intoxi- 
cating liquors supply the stimulus, has not that stimulus 
been sought to a vicious excess before it excited to 
crime ? If ignorance of what is right and just be alleged, 
have not the opportunities of knowledge, which are in 
this country held out and offered to all, been first des- 
pised and neglected ? Has not the boy played truant, 
and the youth stayed from church ? I enter not here 
into any subtle disquisitions about free-will ; it is enough 
to say, that the above are as much dependent on volition 
and choice as any other circumstances in our condition ; 
and that the voluntary nature of such acts must be admit- 
ted, unless we deny the existence of free agency in any 
case whatever. All writers on this subject, whatever 
side they may have taken in the question about liberty 
and necessity, agree in this, that whatever be the nature 
of the necessity to which our wills and actions are sub- 
jected, it is not such as to take away our responsibility, 
or to render us unaccountable for our misdeeds, either 
in the eye of God or man. Cudworth maintains, that 
we are so far the principals and originators of our own 



HIS OBJECTIONS TO RETRIBUTIVE PUNISHMENT. 338 

thoughts and actions, as to be accountable for them, and 
as justly to be punishable for such as are wrong. Butler 
has written a chapter, to shew, that this is confirmed by 
the whole analogy of nature. Edwards, the great 
champion of necessity, holds the very same doctrine. 
So does Locke. Mr Combe himself, though he virtually 
denies the justice of punishment, admits, in the fullest 
manner, the necessity of stopping the career of the 
criminal, and, by the most effectual means, of putting 
an end to crime. He considers the system of peniten- 
tiaries to be the most effectual means, as well as the 
most agreeable to benevolence and the other higher 
sentiments ; and we only differ from him on these points. 
Let us consider them a little more minutely. 

Mr Combe is fond of considering the mental faculties 
and feelings separately, and of representing them as in 
a state of perpetual war and opposition, instead of taking 
the mind as a whole, made up of consistent and harmo- 
nious parts. He represents the present system of curbing 
crime by punishment, as originating entirely in the pro- 
pensities. " The latter," he says, " blindly inflict animal 
resentment, without the slightest regard to the cause 
which led to the crime, or the consequences of the 
punishment. They seize the aggressor, and worry, bite, 
or strangle him ; and there they begin and terminate 
their operations. 

" The moral and intellectual faculties, on the other 
hand, embrace even the criminal himself within the 
range of their sympathies. Benevolence desires to render 
him virtuous, and thereafter happy, as well as to rescue 
his victim. Veneration desires that he should be treated 
as a man : and Conscientiousness declares, that it cannot, 
with satisfaction, acquiesce in any administration towards 
him, that does not tend to remove the motives of his 
misconduct, and to prevent their recurrence," &c«-* 
* Constitution of Man, p. 15, 2d col. 



334 

I shall consider both these points in their order. 
First, I conceive Mr Combe to be wrong in supposing 
our present system of curbing crime by punishment, as 
entirely suggested by the propensities, without senti- 
ment or intellect. I shall go back to the first establish- 
ment of our criminal laws, and suppose a legislator, like 
Alfred, promulgating, for the first time, his code of 
criminal legislation. He finds himself surrounded by 
a savage race, in whom the propensities are wofully 
predominant, — men who would rob, murder, ravish, 
burn, and destroy, with little or no scruple, whenever 
it suited their inclination, or whenever opportunity 
occurred. He would willingly, if he could, have them 
all restrained from crime, and instructed in their duty, 
— but his intellect shews him that this is impossible. 
He has difficulty in procuring instruction for himself, 
or for his children — how shall he provide these for his 
whole subjects ? External restraint is out of the ques- 
tion, for the number of the well-disposed among his 
subjects would be unable to do the duty of jailers to 
those who are otherwise. What then can he do ? 
Intellect informs him that Fear, and the Love of Appro- 
bation, are two of the strongest feelings of the mind, and 
that many who are deficient in Conscientiousness and 
Benevolence may be addressed through these feelings. 
He therefore promulgates a law, that whoever wilfully 
and deliberately puts another man to death, or robs him 
by force on the highway, or sets fire to his house, or 
violates the chastity of his wife or daughter, shall be 
hanged upon a gibbet until he be dead. In promul- 
gating this law, there is not, and cannot be, the slightest 
indulgence of the propensity of Destructiveness, merely 
as such. It is a strong measure, to be sure, and in order 
to put it in force, will require a considerable endowment 
of that species of energetic power which has received 
the name of Destructiveness. But there is not, and 



REASONS FOR RETRIBUTIVE PUNISHMENT. 335 

cannot be, the least anger against any individual. The 
law is not directed against any individual, but intended 
for the benevolent purpose of preventing evil, and with 
the hope that it will be effectual : and in a great many 
cases, there is no doubt that it must be effectual. When- 
ever there is a hesitation or a struggle between the 
lower propensities and the better feelings, the first move- 
ments towards crime may and must be checked by the 
consideration that this act — which is only thought of — 
will probably lead to a shameful and ignominious death. 
There is, therefore, kindness in the very severity of the 
law, — which is such as to keep the greater part of the 
community even from thinking of such crimes. But in 
some cases, the law will be violated ; and, in this event, 
what is the lawgiver to do ? Mr Combe says, Benevo- 
lence desires that the culprit may live and be reformed. 
But a higher and more enlightened benevolence pleads 
for society, and says, that if the law be not executed, it 
will thenceforth be despised ; and if this criminal 
escapes with life, not only may he afterwards commit 
other crimes, but others, whose evil thoughts are yet 
in embryo, expecting the like impunity, will indulge 
inclinations which would otherwise be suppressed, and 
commit offences which a more strict and vigorous 
administration would afford the best means of preven- 
ting. Benevolence itself, when enlightened by these 
considerations, is more swayed by the good of the com- 
munity, than the good of one only. Conscientiousness 
sees it to be just, that he who has infringed the law, 
should suffer by the law ; seeing that, but for this 
infringement, he would have enjoyed the benefit of that 
security which this very law was instituted to afford. 
The duty of the magistrate to preserve the public peace, 
is paramount to his own individual feelings, even though 
he should think that there was a hardship in the case of 



336 PUNISHMENT OF THE CRIMINAL, 

the offender. Firmness, enlightened by intellect, sees 
that a law that is not executed is worse than no law at 
all : and therefore, it rejects all solicitations of mercy, 
represses all useless feelings towards the unhappy 
culprit, and sternly proceeds to the execution of that, 
without which all laws must be nothing more than 
empty threats. And he does so without an atom of 
that merely animal feeling of rage which Mr Combe 
thinks the only one which dictates the punishment. 

"With regard to the effect of capital punishments upon 
the spectators, I utterly deny Mr Combe's position, that 
it merely addresses itself to the propensities. I have 
sometimes witnessed executions, and I never observed, 
even in the lowest of the mob, any thing like gratification 
of the feeling of Destructiceness on such occasions, or 
any thing like a ]ove of bloodshed for its own sake. On 
the contrary, the feelings generally excited, seem to be 
those of deep compassion. Towards a person in such 
unhappy circumstances, all anger is completely sup- 
pressed. Intellect sees that his punishment was not 
decreed to gratify Destructiceness, but to satisfy the law 
— to prevent the law becoming of no effect — to be a 
beacon and a warning to those who might be inclined to 
do the like. Justice and Firmness are alike satisfied that 
this should be the case ; and Benevolence, enlightened 
by intellect, sees that mercy to the guilty would be 
cruelty and injustice to the innocent. " Judex damnatur 
cum iioceas absohitur" 

It thus appears, that, both in the case of the legislator 
who frames the law, the judge who condemns, and the 
spectator who witnesses its execution, the sentiments 
and intellect are principally, if not entirely, concerned 
in the matter, and the propensities not at all : or if the 
latter have any share, it is merely in enabling them to 
give effect to what the former see to be just, benevolent, 
and necessary. 



PREVENTIVE OP CRIME. 337 

Now, if this was the case in the ruder states of society, 
is it less the case now ? For whom are such laws enacted ? 
Not for the good, the well-constituted, or the well- 
educated. These do not require a law of this kind to pre- 
vent them from committing such crimes. It is intended 
to restrain those whose lower propensities are too power- 
ful and active, and whose intellect and higher sentiments 
are not sufficiently strong, or sufficiently educated. In 
short, it is intended for those who still remain in the 
rude uncivilized savage state, as the generality of the 
people were in the age of Alfred. For them, such laws 
are as necessary now as they were then ; and the unfor- 
tunate prevalence of such crimes shews, that this class of 
society is still only too numerous. 

But Mr Combe says here, Why do you allow people 
to commit crimes, and punish them afterwards? would it 
not be better to put them at once under such restraint 
as to prevent all crimes from being committed ? I think 
upon this point Mr Combe will be best answered by Mr 
Combe. In page 22d of the " Constitution of Man," I 
find the following passage, which appears to me so appli- 
cable that I shall make no apology for quoting it entire. 
" The problem is solved by the principle, that happiness 
consists in the activity of our faculties, and that the 
arrangement of punishment after the offence, is far more 
conducive to activity than the opposite. For example, if 
we desired to enjoy the highest gratification in exploring 
a new country, replete with the most exquisite beauties 
of scenery, and the most captivating natural productions; 
and if we found in our path, precipices that gratified 
ideality in the highest degree, but which endangered life, 
when, neglecting the law of gravitation, we advanced so 
near as to fall over them ; whether would it be more 
bountiful in Providence to send an invisible attendant 
with us, who, whenever we are about to approach the 

2 F 



338 PUNISH3IENT MORE BENEVOLENT 

brink, should interpose a barrier, and fairly cut short 
our advance, without requiring us to bestow one thought 
upon the subject, and without our knowing when to 
expect it, and when not ; or to leave all open, but to 
confer on us, as he has done, eyes fitted to see the pre- 
cipice, faculties to comprehend the law of gravitation, 
and Cautiousness to make us fear the infringement of 
it, — and then to leave us to enjoy the scene in perfect 
safety, if we used these powers, but to fall over and suffer 
pain or death, if we neglected to exercise them ? It is 
obvious that the latter arrangement would give far more 
scope to our various powers ; and if active faculties are 
the sources of pleasure, as will be shewn in the next 
chapter, then it would contribute more to our enjoyment 
than the other, xsow, the law punishing after the fact 
is analogous, in the moral world, to this arrangement in 
the physical. If Intellect, Benevolence, Veneration, and 
Conscientiousness, do their parts, they will give intima- 
tions of disapprobation before commission of offences, 
just as Cautiousness will give intimations of danger at 
sight of the cliff; but if these are disregarded, and we 
fall over the moral precipice, the punishment decreed by 
the law follows, just as pain is the chastisement for 
tumbling over the physical brink. The object of both 
institutions is to permit and encourage the most vigorous 
and unrestrained exercise of our faculties, in accordance 
with the physical, moral, and intellectual laws of nature, 
and to punish us only when we transgress these limits." 
This is all so good that I positively can add nothing 
to it. It appears to me to be irrefragable and unanswer- 
able, and indeed to be much more applicable to the 
case of human criminal legislation than to the subject to 
which it was originally applied. I do not see how it is 
possible for Mr Combe to evade the force of his own 
arguments. What is there in our criminal law, even 



THAN DEPRIVATION OF LIBERTY. 339 

that part of it to which Mr Combe has the strongest 
objections, namely, capital punishments, — that is diffe- 
rent in principle from this procedure of the Creator in 
the physical arrangements here referred to ? In fact, 
the principle is precisely the same — its application the 
same — its necessary and unavoidable effect the same. 
It is more benevolent that men should be allowed to 
commit crimes, and be afterwards punished for doing 
so, even though that punishment should be death, than 
that they should be deprived of their personal li berry- 
by being shut up in penitentiaries. The former mode 
affords much greater scope than the latter for the exer- 
cise of all the human faculties, and is therefore more 
conducive, upon the whole, to human happiness. On 
his own principles, the only objection Mr Combe can 
state to our present system is, not that it is too severe 
and indiscriminating, but that it is not severe and 
indiscriminating enough ; for, if it were sufficiently so 
to deprive the guilty of all chance of escape, it is clear 
that it would then be more assimilated to the Creator's 
physical arrangements, though it is not certain even 
then if it would have the effect to prevent all infringe- 
ments against its provisions. 

Much more might be stated on the subject of criminal 
legislation, did time and space permit to institute a com- 
parison between Mr Combe's proposed penitentiaries 
and our present method of ridding the country of dis- 
orderly characters by transportation. I think it may 
be distinctly demonstrated, that the latter is by far the 
most beneficial in its effects, both to the country, the 
culprits themselves, their posterity, and the general for- 
tunes of the world. It is more consistent with personal 
liberty than the penitentiary system, and, therefore, 
more benevolent to the criminal, as permitting the fuller 
exercise of his faculties, upon which, as Mr Combe 
states, happiness mainly depends. 



340 CONCLUSION. 

Various other arguments remain, but I must have 
done. Such an extensive subject would require to be 
treated in a separate work. 



CONCLUSION, 

I shall now recapitulate shortly the results we have 
come to in the foregoing examination of Mr Combe's 
Essay. 

1st, I think it is shewn, that he has completely failed 
in establishing that the moral world has been originally 
constituted on the principle of slow and gradual 
improvement, by the development of its own elements. 
The analogy he refers to in the case of the physical 
world not merely fails him, but affords a powerful argu- 
ment the other way. By his own account, in the 
physical world four or five successive creations of plants 
and animals (that is, four or five successive interferences 
of Almighty power) have taken place, before the earth . 
was fitted for the reception of man as its inhabitant ; and 
in strict analogy to this we find that, in the moral world, 
and since the creation, there have been five miraculous 
interpositions of the same Almighty agency, at the 
respective establishments of the Adamic, the Noahic, 
the Abrahamic or Patriarchal, the Mosaic or Jewish, 
and the Christian dispensations. Instead, therefore, of 
its being true, that " the world, including both the 
physical and moral departments, contains within itself 
the elements of improvement, which time will evolve 
and bring to maturity, it having been constituted on 
the principle of a progressive system, like the acorn in 
reference to the oak," it would appear, on the contrary, 
that the world, including both the physical and moral 



RECAPITULATION. 341 

departments, has not contained within itself the whole 
elements of its own improvement, but that it has required 
in both successive interpositions of divine power to carry 
into effect the designs and purposes of the Deity respect- 
ing it. 

2d, I conceive that Mr Combe has failed completely 
in proving from history the march of moral and intellec- 
tual improvement generally throughout the world ; that, 
on the contrary, it is proved by history, and by existing 
monuments, that the earliest empires were as far, if not 
farther, advanced in arts and sciences, than any that 
succeeded them previous to the introduction of Chris- 
tianity. And as to the improvement which has taken 
place since that period, and which is now rapidly pro- 
gressing, it is entirely confined to those countries which have 
been blessed with the light of Christianity, the remainder 
of the world being either stationary or retrograde. 

3d, I conceive that he has entirely failed in his argu- 
ment upon philosophical grounds against the Scripture 
doctrine of the degeneracy or depravity of human nature. 
The whole analogy of nature leads to the belief that man 
was created in a state of perfection, and his present state 
sufficiently shews that he has everywhere degenerated 
from that perfection. 

4th, Without in the least disputing the uniformity 
and constancy of nature's operations, of which I am as 
well aware as Mr Combe, I think he has completely 
failed in eliciting from thence a system of natural laws 
which shall be sufficient for the regulation of man's 
conduct in the present life ; or in shewing that it is 
possible for man, in his present state, either to discover 
or to obey all these laws, so as to remedy the disorders 
that have crept into the world. 

5th, I conceive that Mr Combe, and other writers 
who maintain the sufficiency of the natural laws, have 
2 f 2 



342 RECAPITULATION. 

failed in giving any intelligible view of these laws, even 
in the department of morals ; that the view they give is 
utterly defective and unsound, and rests on no founda- 
tion of philosophical principle ; and that no means exist, 
or at least, that they have not pointed out the means, of 
discovering a perfect rule of conduct by the lights of 
natural reason. 

6th, On the other hand, that the moral law, as 
revealed in the Scriptures, is absolutely perfect, and 
comprehends in a few simple and intelligible precepts 
a complete system of human duty, — that this law is 
" universal, invariable, unbending, harmonious in itself, 
conformable to the most perfect moral feeling, and the 
most perfect reason, and in the strictest sense divine" 

1th, I conceive that the account given by Mr Combe 
of the special faculties, propensities, and sentiments, (in 
which I believe he closely follows Dr Spurzheim,) is 
defective in several respects, and offers an erroneous 
view of our nature, by making too marked a distinction 
between the faculties peculiar to man, and those which 
are common to him and certain of the animals, degrading 
the latter beneath their just rank, — that the faculties 
and their organs cannot be correctly exhibited, as Mr 
Combe does, in a tabular view, as divided into distinctly 
marked sections, — but that the whole hang together as 
a harmonious scheme, nicely adjusted and balanced by 
a great variety of minute and curious adaptations and 
dependencies, and evidently bearing marks of divine 
contrivance. 

Sth, I conceive that Mr Combe has completely failed 
in establishing the principle of the supremacy of what he 
calls exclusively the moral sentiments. That, on the 
contrary, all the feelings and sentiments of our nature 
have their uses and abuses, their proper and improper 
modes of action, their moral or immoral tendencies ; 



RECAPITULATION. 343 

and that each particular instance of such conduct is 
approved or disapproved by the general power of moral 
judgment called Conscience, being the combined dictate 
of the whole feelings enlightened and guided by intellect. 
9th, I conceive Mr Combe has failed in establishing 
any sound philosophical objection to the Scripture 
doctrine of the depravity of human nature ; and that, 
on the contrary, that doctrine is strictly in harmony with 
what Phrenology reveals with regard to the faculties of 
man, and with the present state and whole manifestations 
of his faculties. 

IQth, I conceive Mr Combe has entirely failed in his 
objection to the paradisaical state, founded on the exis- 
tence of certain organs in the brain, and certain faculties 
in the mind, which he supposes to be inconsistent with 
such a state — that such an objection is quite unphiloso- 
phical — but at any rate that the faculties in question 
were necessary to man in exery stale, and might have 
received full employment and gratification in a world 
where there was neither sin, sorrow, pain, nor danger. 

llth, I conceive it has been shewn, that Mr Combe's 
objection to the Scripture doctrine, that death was 
brought upon man as the punishment of sin, is an 
unphilosophical objection — that he has no grounds, in 
fact or in philosophy, for maintaining that man, at his 
creation, and anterior to his fall from innocence, must 
have been liable to death — that the state in which man 
w r as then placed was totally different from the present, 
and one as to which natural reason affords no light, and 
as to which we are as little entitled to draw conclusions, 
as we are with regard to his condition in a future state 
beyond the grave — and that it is transgressing the 
plainest rules of philosophical inquiry to attempt to 
investigate a subject where no data exist for enabling 
us to come to any certain conclusion. 



344 RECAPITULATION. 

Ylth, I conceive that Mr Combe is wrong in 
omitting to take any notice of a future state, or of the 
arguments from natural reason, and especially from 
Phrenology, for supposing such a state to be probable : 
that this is particularly inexcusable in a treatise pro- 
fessedly of a practical and popular nature, intended as a 
guide to individual conduct. 

13th, I conceive Mr Combe has completely failed in 
his attempts to prove, that the pains of parturition are 
not an institution of the Creator ; or that they may be 
evaded or removed, by obeying certain unknown natural 
laws. 

\.4oth, I conceive Mr Combe has been completely 
unsuccessful in his attempts to shew the necessity or 
propriety of bringing Science in aid of Scripture — that 
his views on this subject exhibit the most glaring incon- 
sistency — that the authority of Lord Bacon is most 
express against mixing divine and human knowledge — 
that the case of Galileo, which he is eternally quoting, is 
against him, it being equally improper to bring Science 
into collision with Scripture, as to bring Scripture into 
collision with Science — that he has failed in making- out 
a case against Scripture, from differences of doctrine, 
various readings, and difficulty of interpretation — that 
by his garbled and partial quotations from Jeremy 
Taylor, he has represented that divine as stating opinions 
the very reverse of those he actually entertained — that 
he has misrepresented the doctrines held by the Church 
of Scotland concerning Prayer, and has given a defective 
and erroneous account of the case of Professor Leechman 
in relation to that subject — that his own view of praver 
is radically defective and absurd — and lastly, that it is 
impossible, upon any grounds drawn from Phrenology, 
either to subvert or materially to support any theological 
doctrine that is clearly revealed in the Scriptures, — the 



RECAPITULATION. 345 

two subjects lying perfectly distinct, and their spheres 
being divided by an impassable boundary. 

Lastly^ I conceive that Mr Combe's views on the 
subject of criminal legislation have been admirably 
refuted by Mr Combe himself, and that on grounds 
which, on his own principles, it is impossible for him to 
controvert. 

There are various other subjects treated of in Mr 
Combe's work, into which at present I have neither 
leisure nor inclination to enter. I cannot prevail upon 
myself, for instance, to engage in any discussion as to 
the laws of propagation, which, as it appears to me, it 
would be better to leave to be treated of scientifically 
and separately, as an object of medical inquiry. The 
details to which it leads appear to me unutterably dis- 
gusting in a work like ihe present. Some of them may 
have a foundation in nature, but many others are 
pre-eminently absurd, and some of them, as I think, 
demonstrably false. It appears to me that the know- 
ledge which mankind in general possess on this subject 
is already quite sufficient for any practical or practicable 
purpose ; and that, in relation to the intercourse between 
the sexes, matters are better ordered by leaving them to 
be regulated by natural taste and natural feeling, than 
by attempting to subvert these, and to put them under 
the dominion of any set of hard philosophical rules. I 
am not prepared on this subject, to sacrifice the retiring 
graces of female modesty, or the hallowed flame of 
virtuous love, to the cold calculations of a harsh and 
unbending philosophy. 

Neither am I disposed to follow Mr Combe through 
his speculations on politics and political economy, which 
appear to be equally crude and undigested, as those 
upon the subjects which have been already touched upon. 
In these speculations he seems to have taken no enlarged, 



346 POLITICAL VIEWS. 

statesmanlike, or truly philosophical survey of any ques- 
tion, but to have adopted, in the lump, the prejudiced, 
and sometimes illiberal views of one particular party, 
which he does his utmost to support by an application 
of phrenological principles ; and that all this is done in 
such a way as to shew, not that the political views natu- 
rally or necessarily follow from the philosophical, but 
that the former have been adopted in the first place, 
and that he has afterwards set himself to bolster them 
up, by arguments, often of the weakest description, 
drawn, or attempted to be drawn, from the latter. 

It would be endless to follow him through the inter- 
minable cases he produces of the evils, or punishments, 
which men bring upon themselves by what he calls 
disobeying the natural lav;s. What is the use of appal- 
ling us with such details, until he first informs us what 
are the laws that we are called upon to obey. I have 
as yet seen no code of these laws, however imperfect ; 
certainly there is none contained in Mr Combe's book. 
I have heard of some of them, particularly one, that 
people should sit for an hour or two after every meal, 
in total idleness, in order to allow the nervous energy of 
the brain to expend itself in the proper digestion of the 
food ; and another, (which is particularly new,) that it 
is necessary to walk a certain number of miles every day 
before dinner, for the purpose of procuring an appetite. 
Then we have long stories about shipwrecks, and fires 
in Edinburgh ; about retired tradesmen, and weavers 
out of work, and ill ventilated rooms, and flannel 
jackets, and colds caught by exposure after being warm, 
and feminine tales of " unaired shirts, catarrhs and 
toothach got with thin soled shoes." What utter 
drivelling is this ! Does not every individual, possessing 
the most limited portion of sense and information, know 
all these things almost, if not altogether, as well as Mr 



347 

Combe ? And what is the use of writing interminable 
books to prove what is perfectly obvious to every old 
woman in the parish ? If Mr Combe thought that the 
world at large stood in need of this sort of information, 
he might have communicated all that he has done, and 
ten times more, to ten times better purpose, without all 
this fuss — the parade of conjoining such commonplace 
trash with what appears to be intended as a philosophical 
system. 

Taking a general view of Mr Combe's Svstem as a 
whole, I must be forgiven for saying, that it is a low 
and grovelling system. It is grovelling in respect of its 
objects, — in respect of the motives it presents to us, — 
and in respect of its excluding all that can serve truly to 
elevate the views, and exalt the character of man. 

It is low in respect of its objects, — which are confined 
to the paltry details and insignificant concerns of the 
present life ; leading, if it should ever be practically 
followed, to the devotion of our whole time and atten- 
tion to remedying evils which it is often better to despise, 
and to procuring accommodations which add nothing to 
the happiness of a noble mind. 

It is low in respect of its motives, — which are uniformly 
selfish throughout. It calls us to cultivate our higher 
sentiments and intellect, not from high, disinterested, or 
elevating considerations, but solely as the best means of 
increasing our own enjoyment. In respect of the 
motives which it offers, it seems to be exactly on a level 
with the system of Epicurus ; and, like that system, 
leads us to consider the " supreme good " to consist in 
" ease of body, and tranquillity of mind." It is infinitely 
inferior, in this respect, to the systems of Plato or the 
Stoics, and many others that might be named. I shall 
not insult the reader by stating any comparison between 
it and Christianity. 



348 SCIENCES GENERALLY MISAPPLIED. 

It is a low system, because it leaves out all the motives 
that most effectually tend to exalt and ameliorate the 
human character. It presents us with no object of love 
and reverence — no being who can be the object of worship 
or adoration, — exhibits no character removed above the 
most ordinary level of human mediocrity — none the 
least approaching to individual excellence — none that 
can be pointed out as an example for imitation. 

The systematic exclusion of a future state — the prime 
circumstance in our condition which elevates us above 
the " brutes that perish; " the limiting our views to the 
present unsatisfactory life — unsatisfactory, unless con- 
sidered in reference to another; the refusing to Hope, 
the only object on which it can rest with full satisfaction, 
— all these circumstances are quite enough to bear out 
the proposition, that it is a low and grovelling system. 

Let it not be supposed for a moment, that I object 
to the cultivation and proper use of scientific know- 
ledge. On the contrary, I hold, with Lord Bacon, 
that it is impossible to go too far in the study of 
natural truth, or in the study of revealed truth.* All 
truth, when discovered, and when its proper limits and 
applications have been fully investigated, will in due 
time be applied to its own legitimate uses. It is 
impossible to prevent this, and it would be eminently 
absurd to object to it. But what I object to is, the 
rash, premature, and ill advised use of a knowledge that 
is but half scientific ; attempting to force into practical 

* "To conclude, therefore, let no man, upon a weak conceit of 
sobriety, or an ill applied moderation, think or maintain that a man can 
search too far, or be too well studied in the book of God's word, or in 
the book of God's works — divinity or philosophy ; but rather let men 
endeavour an endless progress or profieience in both : only, let men 
beware, that they apply both to charity, and not to swelling ; to use, 
and not to ostentation ; and again, that they do not unwisely mingle or 
confound these learnings together." Bacon's Works, vol. ii. p. 13. 



AT THEIR FIRST DISCOVERY. 349 

use a crude and imperfect knowledge, or applying real 
knowledge to uses which it never can be fitted to serve. 
This, however, has been the fate of almost every 
science at, or soon after, its discovery. In almost every 
case, the original discoverers, or first cultivators of a new 
science, have mistaken the true ends which it was ulti- 
mately destined to achieve, and endeavoured to apply it 
in a way and to purposes which could never lead to any 
successful result. The first cultivators of the science of 
Astronomy were astrologers, and attempted, by studying 
the motions of the heavenly bodies, to arrive at the 
knowledge of future events. This was not the mere 
superstition of the ignorant vulgar, but was reduced 
into regular method, and the calculations made by rules, 
which are treated of in many elaborate works. This 
extraordinary misapplication of the most perfect and 
sublime of all sciences, even continued to bewilder the 
understandings of men down to the age of Bacon and 
Galileo. Tycho Brahe was infected with it ; and Kepler, 
who paved the way for the discoveries of Newton, was, 
for a great part of his life, employed in pursuing 
phantoms equally unsubstantial. Astronomy had been 
studied in one country or another for three thousand 
years before its true uses were discovered, and before it 
was applied practically and efficiently to the improve- 
ment of navigation and geography — for ascertaining the 
true figure of the earth, and the relative situation of 
places on its surface. 

The original students of Chemistry were the alche- 
mists. They had not the least conception of the impor- 
tant results which have since arisen from this science : 
they aimed at discovering the elementary qualities of 
substances, for the purpose of enabling them to convert 
the baser metals into gold, — an object which, if attained, 
would have been useless to the world, and infinitely 
pernicious to the discoverers. This pursuit also was not 

2 G 



350 ALCHEMY COSMOGONIES. 

a mere whim or fancy of the ignorant, but was followed 
with the greatest eagerness by those who were compara- 
tively learned, and who looked upon themselves as 
philosophers. Their processes were reduced to rule, 
and formed the subject of voluminous works. The 
dreams of the alchemists were not thoroughly banished 
in the days of Bacon, or even in those of Boyle ; and it 
was not till the middle of the last century that the true 
objects of chemical research, and the proper mode of 
conducting it, came to be understood by its cultivators. 

The original Geologists were not satisfied with examin- 
ing the strata and other appearances on the surface of 
the earth, in order to discover the successive changes it 
had undergone. Their objects were far more lofty and 
magnificent. They attempted nothing less than to 
discover the mode of formation of the universe. They 
aimed at constructing, not geologies, but cosmogonies, 
and speculated regarding the time when this globe, and 
all the other planets, were formed from masses of matter 
in a state of fusion, detached from the sun, and afterwards 
brought by their own centripetal and centrifugal forces 
into the regular and beautiful forms and motions which 
they exhibit at this day. These speculations were of 
course mere idle reveries, and never could lead to any 
solid conclusion ; but this was the method, even so late 
as the days of Buffon, which was pursued by philoso- 
phers in studying the theory of the earth. 

I am far from wishing to represent Phrenology, as at 
present cultivated, as a fantastic speculation like those 
now mentioned, or to consider Doctors Gall and 
Spurzheim as visionaries, like the ancient alchemists 
and cosmogonists. I look upon the discoveries of these 
great men as real and substantial discoveries, offering 
the most important and interesting objects of investiga- 
tion that, perhaps, ever have been exhibited to the world, 
and likely in time to lead to the greatest results. But it 



PREMATURE SYSTEMATIZING. 351 

is just the deep sense I entertain of the importance of 
this science, that leads me to remind its cultivators of 
the evils of rash and immature speculation, and to point 
to the examples of this that have occurred in other 
sciences. 

I would remind them, that it is only by gradual steps, 
and much patient investigation, that those sciences which 
are now most firmly established, and which have been 
followed by the richest harvest of practical usefulness, 
have been brought into their present state of perfection. 
I would remind them of the warning given by Lord 
Bacon against " the over-early and peremptory reduction 
of knowledge into arts and methods, from which time, 
commonly, sciences receive small or no augmentation ;"* 
also of his condemnation of those who "disdain to spell, 
and so by degrees to read, in the volume of God's 
works ; and who, contrariwise, by continual meditation 
and agitation of wit, do urge, and, as it were, invocate 
their own spirits to divine, and give oracles unto them, 
whereby they are universally deluded "\ 

It is no disparagement to Mr Combe, to say that 
he has not yet succeeded in reducing the discoveries of 
Gall and Spurzheim into a complete and perfect system. 
To have done so from the materials he possessed, would 
have required an intellect altogether superhuman. 
Phrenology is a subject so vast and important — so 
new in the mode of its cultivation — it opens up so 
many subjects of interesting investigation — and these 
have been as yet so imperfectly explored — that no 
created intelligence could be capable at once of com- 
prehending its details — penetrating its mysteries — un- 
ravelling its intricacies — enlightening its dark recesses 
— and bringing it forth and exhibiting it to the light in 
all its aspects, physical, metaphysical, social, moral, and 

* Bacon's Works, ii. 48. t. Ibid. ii. 49, 



352 PHRENOLOGY STILL IN ITS NONAGE. 

political. If Mr Combe has failed in doing this, he has 
only failed in that which no human intellect in the 
present state of the science could have succeeded in 
accomplishing. 

Though it would perhaps be unjust to say that the 1 
science is yet in its infancy, we may at the least safely 
venture to maintain that it has not yet passed the years 
of its nonage. It exhibits a favourable promise of what 
it may be in the time of its maturity, but much yet 
remains to be done, and many labours to be undergone, 
before it shall reach the perfect stature, and full and 
beautiful proportion, which I am quite satisfied it will 
one day attain. Much has yet to be done in the field 
of observation — much in the judicious comparing and 
careful induction of facts — much also is to be done in 
the metaphysics of the science, in ascertaining correctly 
the true functions, and limits of the faculties, their 
mutual dependencies, and their various combinations. 
The harvest in all these particulars is undoubtedly 
great, but the labourers have been miserably few ; and 
many of those who ought to have assisted in the work 
have stood aloof, and not merely refused to enter the 
field themselves, but have hindered those who were 
willing to enter. 

This, then, is the difference between my views of the 
science and those of Mr Combe. He seems to regard 
it as already complete and full grown ; I look upon it 
only as in an early period of its growth to maturity. It 
is yet but a very few years since some of the more 
important points relating to it could be considered as 
settled. There are many more not settled yet, and many 
on which we have but a mere glimmering of the truth. 
We know a good deal on the subject of the correspon- 
dence between the development of the brain, and the 
natural character ; very little on the differences arising 
from internal organization, and the effects of different 



RASH EXPERIMENTS DEPRECATED. 353 

bodily temperaments ; still less of those resulting from 
the successive growth, and development or diminution 
of parts, and of the action of moral and physical causes 
in producing these ; and we are equally in the dark on 
various other points. 

Is it advisable, then, in this imperfect state of the 
science, to rush headlong into experiments, and to talk 
of overturning the old opinions, institutions, and usages 
of society — to tamper with education, legislation, mar- 
riage, politics, civil and criminal jurisprudence, and 
above all, religion ; or even to speak of these things as 
likely soon to be accomplished or attempted ? As I 
differ from Mr Combe as to the clearness of that light 
which he supposes Phrenology, in its present state, to 
be capable of throwing on all those subjects, so neither 
can I admit the depth of that darkness which he 
supposes the world to have universally lain under in 
regard to them up to the present time. Shakespeare 
lived and wrote before Phrenology was discovered, and 
he understood human nature as well as Mr Combe. 
Sir Walter Scott did not avail himself of the lights of 
Phrenology, yet his representations of character are, in 
many cases, such as no phrenologist could presume to 
mend. These are but two instances out of many. 
Various others might be cited, among our dramatists, 
poets, historians, and moralists, of writers who possessed 
an intuitive perception of the motives and springs of 
human action, and whose analysis of mental feelings 
agrees almost entirely with that which would be given 
by a phrenologist. Almost the only exceptions to this 
among our great writers, occur in the case of the meta- 
physicians ; and the reason seems to be, that they have 
studied human nature in their closets, and not in the 
world. But many of our eminent divines, in their 
sermons and other compositions, shew a thorough prac- 
tical knowledge of the human heart; and sometimes 



354 CONCLUSION. 

hold up a glass, in which the sinner may see his 
character portrayed with fearful accuracy. Upon the 
whole, therefore, I am inclined to anticipate, that when 
Phrenology has been brought to a higher state of 
cultivation than it has hitherto reached, there will be 
found much less difference between the views which it 
offers, and those which have been hitherto entertained by 
men of practical good sense, than Mr Combe seems to 
suppose. That it will prove of essential benefit to society 
I entertain not the least doubt ; but that it will ever, as 
he supposes, reach to revolutionize, reform, and regene- 
rate the world, I look upon to be a dream as vain and 
unsubstantial as the wildest chimeras of the alchemists. 

In taking leave of Mr Combe and his work, I cannot 
help intimating my fixed impression that he has in it 
abandoned that sobriety and humility of mind " which 
laboureth to spell, and so by degrees to read, in the book 
of God's works ;" and that he has been rather " urging 
and invocating his spirit to divine, and give forth 
oracles;" — and that he has farther forgotten the warning 
so expressively given by Lord Bacon to all who would 
be interpreters of nature, that "it is a point ft and 
necessary, without hesitation or reservation, to be professed, 

THAT IT IS NO LESS TRUE IN THIS HUMAN KINGDOM OF 
KNOWLEDGE THAN IN GOD'S KINGDOM OF HEAVEN, 
THAT NO MAN SHALL ENTER INTO IT EXCEPT HE 
BECOME FIRST AS A LITTLE CHILD." 



THE END. 



EDINBURGH: 
Printed by Andrew ShorTrede, Thistle Lane. 






QN/V 






